Things are Never as They Seem
by Alice Bekett
Summary: After thousands of years of repeating the same mistakes,Eternity is finding that the endless circle is breaking,and maybe she can defeat the corrupt Celestia and allow Luna to rule.First she Must convince the ponies that Celestia isnt who she says.
1. Of Wasting

PLEASE READ:

**I started thinking of this after my Mom and I watched an episode of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. It introduced the idea of evil ponies, and I started thinking about story ideas for Mom. I tried to think of something that could start off with the ponies turning evil, but couldn't find a way to make it work. Instead I thought of this, what if the bright Princess Celestia wasn't as she seemed? What if all the ponies were living in ignorance of their past? I came up with this, discussed minor details with Mom, and got Dad to read some of it. I do not own the Canon My Little Ponies, or the places that I got off the TV show or the other things I remember from the cartoons from when I was little. I am not making any money from this. Eternity and this plot, I do own. This may get a little graphic later on, which is why I'm going to rate it as I am, on , under my pen name: Alice Bekett. I hope no one take offence to making something so childlike and twisting it until almost nothing of the childlike beginnings remain. There may be romance later on, but I doubt it. Please read and review and let me know what you think. Please, no flames, and thank you. **

I watched from my place at the edge of the broken brick wall of the ruins. These six ponies were disturbing Nightmare Moon. This could not be allowed. I started to limp quietly forward before the pink one's loud, annoying voice bounced off the walls.

"We'll go now, Twilight needs to concentrate."

I pressed more into the cold stone, wishing I could melt right into it. The purple unicorn stayed and started working her magic. A bright spark lit the room before Nightmare Moon's cloud of blue power swept them up. Twilight dove after them and was transported to where Nightmare Moon was in her tower. I inwardly cursed, _not again_!

The other five soon followed and I willed my wings to carry me to the tower so I could see what was happening. I flew to the top of the room and rested on a beam. Twilight was starting to charge at Nightmare Moon and Nightmare Moon returned the challenge. I cursed again. _Why doesn't she ever listen to me?_ I asked myself inwardly. I already knew the answer. Celestia had programmed Luna's clones this way: it was easier to stop her this way. Do not allow a possible threat to become too powerful, or something might come of it.

I winced when Twilight defeated Luna's clone. Where the real Luna had went, I know not. Celestia had had many clones of herself and her sister made before the Fall. Afterwords, I never saw the real Luna again, only her clones and the madness which created her counterpart, Nightmare Moon, to come into fruition.

Celestia appeared and I almost growled and hissed at her. I Didn't breathe, didn't move. She made her grand speech to the Elemental ponies. They then left with a newly transformed Luna. She would not remember why her drive to rule would become strong in years, maybe even hundreds of years from now. Celestia would keep the memories away from her for as long as possible, or until she thought Luna could finally accept the information.

I shook myself, it was an never ending cycle. I could not do anything to stop it for the last four thousand years, what could change that now? Celestia had reigned for so long that no one remembered the time Before the Fall. No one except me and Celestia. I wondered if Luna remembered, or if she just chose to forget, and when the memories resurfaced, she returned to me; her one, lone follower.

I flew back down the the floor and switched to my human form. Before the Fall, we were highly advanced, and looking at other dimensions. We had found Earth entirely by accident, and I found myself volunteering to go there for my freedom from the war. I came back changed. I could switch between a human form and my original form at will and had a greater hold of myself and my magic. I was never freed, only tested on. My family left and never came back. The day they left had been the last time I had seen them. I could no longer remember he pony name I was given at birth. I was known as Dark Shadow or Eternity to those who knew me and nothing more.

I slowly made my way away from the ruins and went deeper into the Everfree Forest and scoffed at the name. I found my way to my debilitated shack and slipped inside. I found myself face to face with a full length mirror.

Unlike humans, I had sharp teeth and pointed ears; something to do with the differences between the DNA that made up our races. Shaggy black hair hung in tangles around my face. I half-heartedly ran a hand through it, but grimaced as the tangles got stuck on my fingers. I tugged my fingers free and sighed. I would have to make a hairbrush, or another pair of scissors. Nightmare Moon had destroyed my last pair when we went into hiding, a little more than a thousand years ago. I sat in a chair that dated back to Before the Fall. It was falling apart and was very uncomfortable, but I couldn't depart with it. It was one of the only few artifacts left. I had found it in the castle of the sister ponies. I laughed out loud, a hollow, hoarse sound. The sister ponies were Luna and Celestia, before Celestia had gone power hungry and half-mad.

"I wonder how she stays so happy and wise all the time," I wondered aloud, the metallic, raspy sound of my voice surprised me. Had it been that long since I had talked? I thought back, but found it hard to separate the days and weeks from each other. When you are alone, everything bleeds together. I laughed aloud again and briefly wondered if I was going mad.

I had to start from scratch again, wait for Luna to turn from her sister, and hope she runs here before Celestia finds her out. If Celestia did, I would have to wait even longer before the new clone was programmed properly and all the kinks worked out. Then she would figure out Celestia wasn't who everyone thought she was.

I flopped to one side._ This is useless. I am never going to get rid of Celestia, or kill her. I can't even find the real Luna, our rightful Queen. _I looked over to the various maps I had hung up all over the walls, they all formed the whole of the surrounding area. Much of it was filled in. I had searched on and off for three thousand years and I was still empty handed.

I remember Luna, the real Luna. She could never be compared to the clones. She had once told me; "She left me in the dark, so darkness I became."

I remembered feeling sorry for her, we both lost our families due to the war. We had both been powerless to stop it and in the end, sacrificed everything to save Equestria. I only wish was that I wasn't alone. I knew my exile had been mostly self inflicted, if I had been a good little lab rat and not stolen the ageless serum I would be long dead and at peace. I had often thought about death, in between the cycles of trying to reprogram Luna's clones. I didn't have the courage, or the strength, to do it.

I looked at the clock, before realizing that it was still broken. I got up off the chair and looked outside. The stars were out and the moon was shining at its brightest. I sighed and took of my clothes. I sank to the ground and crawled to the nest of cloths, blankets, pillows and whatever else I could find. It was an uncomfortable bed, but a bed nonetheless.

I awoke the next morning half expecting Nightmare Moon making tea on the wood stove. I shook myself of the notion immediately. I stood and started making tea myself. I started humming absentmindedly. It was an old tune that my mother had sung to me when I was a filly. I barely remembered the words, but the tune was always stuck in my head. I soon finished my cup of tea and turned to look at my reflection in the mirror.

My skin was unnaturally pale, and I was too thin for my height. I could see all the bones in my body. My hair hung in my eyes, I brushed it aside and looked into my dull, lifeless, green eyes. They looked almost dead, but a small spark still remained. I switched into my pony form and found my appearance much the same. My eyes remained the same, and my black mane and tail were still very tangled and my fur was pure white. My ribs clearly showed and I could see every bone clearly.

I sighed, and my stomach grumbled. I switched to human form again and decided to go get some food. I walked around back to a small plot of fertile land that grew the majority of my food. I tended to it carefully and grabbed my hunting knife. I would check my traps and hope for the best.

As a pony, I couldn't eat meat, but as a human I could. Meat made most of my diet, seeing as vegetables were relatively rare. The first three I checked were empty, but I found one with a rabbit in it. I killed it easily and brought it back to my shack. I skinned, cleaned and took out the parts that I couldn't eat before I laid the strips over a pole and started the fire. I placed the pole over the fire, and put some salt on them. When they finished cooking, I munched on them happily.

After a little while, I put out my fire. I changed into my pony form and put on my cloak. I walked to the edge of the forest to watch Ponyville from afar. I saw various ponies playing and flying up above the town. I remembered when the area had been part of my forest, before Celestia had expanded her grip on the world. If she expanded much more, I would have to move and rebuild my cabin, something I had never done.

I was so lost in my thoughts that a loud yell startled me, "Hi! What's your name?" I turned and almost growled. It was the Element of Laughter, "Can you talk? I'm Pinkie Pie!" The pink pony smiled widely.

I blinked, I had to leave. I was breaking the rules. One of the other Elements, her fur was white and she had a long and purple mane with a tail to match. _What was her Element?_ I thought, before remembering. _It was Generosity, wasn't it? _

"What's going on?" she asked Pinky Pie. She turned to me, and without waiting for an answer, gasped and looked straight at me, "Oh dear. Look at your mane and tail! It's all matted, I can make it better!"

Before I could try to do anything, her horn lit up and I felt the mats in my mane and tail undo. Fear gripped my heart. This had been the first time a fellow pony had used magic on me for almost two thousand years; I had forgotten what it had been like.

My mouth went dry, and I found I couldn't say anything, "There, that's better." The unicorn looked closer at me, "Can you step into the sunlight for a moment, I need to see you to make you even prettier."

I blinked, It had been a while since I had even set a hoof out of the Everfree Forest. I coughed, clearing my throat, "Celestia?' I rasped.

Piny Pie and the unicorn shared a glace, " I can go get her!" Said Pinky Pie energetically.

"NO!" I shrunk back into the forest a little, the power of my underused voice had startled me.

"Please don't go. Celestia isn't here. She's back in Canterlot." The unicorn said softly, "Can you come out from there?"

I stepped forward and grimaced as bright sunlight hit my eyes. Celestia made sure it was always dark and foggy in the ruins. I squinted, and my eyes burned.

Pinky Pie and the unicorn gasped, "Uh, Rarity, you might wanna go get Doctor Whooves." Pinky Pie said. I flinched back into the shadows again, the cool darkness soothing my burning eyes. I shook my head wildly, but Rarity, the unicorn, was already gone. I ran away from the edge of the forest, panicking. _What if they find me? What if they lead Celestia here? What if Celestia finds me?_ A billion questions bounced around in my brain as I fled.

I stopped after a few minutes of my frantic pace, leaning against a tree. I faintly heard Pinky Pie calling after me, but it was too late, I would vanish in thin air and they would never see me again. I transformed into my human state, and my cloak changed with me.

I felt my hair, it was still filthy, but it felt as if it had been brushed with loving hands. I turned back into my pony form and started running again, looked around. I was near the lake, I could have a bath and swim for a while, maybe find enough wood for me to make a comb, or find one of the swords of old in the nearby ruins and finally cut my hair. I doubted I would find the sword, but it was a nice thought.

I turned into my human form when I reached the shore. I slipped off my cloak and stepped into the water. It was cold at first, but I began to get used to it. I swam around before using my handmade soap to wash my skin and hair. I soon felt clean and refreshed.

I swam around for a while longer before climbing out and drying off in the small amount of sunshine that passed through the gloom. I slipped my cloak back on and transformed back into pony form. I made my way back to my shack, checked my garden and fell asleep.

I awoke late at night, with all six Elements of Harmony staring at me. My fears were becoming reality, but I realized that the cycle was bending, the endless circle of failure on my part were breaking.

Hope shined in my heart for the first time in three thousand years, I had a chance to defeat Celestia after all, and maybe help ponies remember what we had lost.


	2. Of Ideas and Proof

I stared at them for a few minutes, waiting for them to say something. After a moment, Pinkie Pie looked right at me and exclaimed: "We should have a party!"

I blinked, _what is she talking about? _Twilight looked irritated, "Why, Pinkie?" She asked.

Pinkie Pie hopped around, looking very much out of place in the darkness of my shack, "we found a new friend, of course!"

I blinked and stood up. _How did they find me?_ I wondered. I licked my lips and coughed, "How?-"

"We decided we would help you and bring Princess Celestia here so she can help," Rarity said proudly.

My blood ran cold and my heart skipped a beat, "What?" Horror rose in my throat and I felt nauseous.

"Eternity, it is nice to see you again.' The floaty, noble voice of Celestia startled me and I instinctively turned into my human form. I growled and hissed at her, backing up toward my table. I bared my teeth, and Celestia smiled, it was warm, and reminded me of the Celestia that had been kind and caring. I sharply reminded myself of the monster she had become after her parents' death.

"It has been a very long time. I see you have not given up this more _animal _shape," Celestia sounded like she was talking about a cockroach, "I do believe she is unable to be saved. She is clearly insane, driven mad by being alone for almost three thousand years."

I met Celestia's purple eyes and growled again, "Leave this place, Celestia. I am not your subject anymore. I do not mix with your subjects, and I wish you and yours to leave," I ground out, wishing my voice was stronger.

Her eyes narrowed, but she did not anger as I suspected her to. I remembered the Elements, and realized they were the reason I was not dead. I placed my hands on my hips, "I leave your subjects alone and you will leave me to my own devices."

"You are one of my subjects," Her voice allowed no room for argument, "I treat all of my subjects fairly."

I laughed, I couldn't believe it. She was lying to me, with her _loyal subjects_ right there. I glared, "Leave."

"It seems you are in need of some manners," Celestia said coolly, "Not much has changed, then." She turned to Twilight, "I would like my once faithful friend returned to me. Could you take her in until she can live on her own again?"

Twilight nodded, "Of course, Celestia. I'll do anything for you."

I crossed my arms over my chest, "I take it I have no say in this?"

Celestia looked at me and smiled, and I caught a glimpse of malice in her eyes, "You are mentally unable to make your own decisions. I will allow you to get your belongings."

"I want my armchair," I said stubbornly.

Celestia sighed, "Transport can be arranged."

'I am not leaving until I know it's safe."

"Princess Celestia is a good pony, your armchair will be safe." Rarity

"No, I am not leaving-"

"We can transport it magically," Twilight said suddenly, "If Rarity and I focus our magic we can bring it with us."

I nodded, "Fine." I started looking around, what could I take? My notebooks, journals and the few books I owned would obviously come with me, but what else? I mentally went through what else I had in the shack. I could carry my mirror on my back if need be, and my few articles of clothing would be placed on the chair.

That was it, three thousand years and all I had was some furniture, books and a few articles of clothing. I sighed, "I know what I need." I dug through my pile of clothing on the floor and pulled several outfits from it. Next, I placed them on the chair. Then, grabbed my books, journals and notebooks and wrapped them in a blanket. They were heavier than anticipated, I cleverly tied several blankets together to make a bag. I slung it over my shoulder and turned into my pony form. I considered my mirror. What could I do with it? Clearly, a second trip wasn't an option.

The Element of Loyalty looked at me, then looked at the Element of Kindness, "Fluttershy and I will carry that for you. It's not that far of a fly for us."

The yellow pegasus nodded shyly, "Yeah."

I nodded, "That's everything, then."

Twilight blinked, "That can't be it."

"It is," I repeated more forcefully then I meant, keeping Celestia in my peripheral vision, "Can we go?" I asked.

_..._

The trip to Ponyville was shorter than I imagined, and in they dying sunlight the buildings didn't look as bright as they had earlier. The neon colours were diminished, still bright, but tolerable. We entered a pavilion, with a fountain at it's centre. We walked close to a large house that was built into a tree, when we neared it a baby dragon stepped out.

My blood froze in my veins and fear gripped my heart. My mind flashed back to the war:

I have to stay in human form, _I thought frantically. _I've got to.

_I looked around, hoping to see if we were winning or not. It seemed to be close, but we were winning. I used my dagger to find some ponies that were clearly mind-controlled. My magic reserve was drained, __I killed them._

_Cheers bombarded my ears, and I felt happy. Were were going to win, we were going to help Equestria. Suddenly, overhead, I heard dragons roar in the distance, and my heart sank. We couldn't defend against dragons, and I felt an overwhelming sense of doom build in my chest._

_I started to sound the retreat, but it was too late. Ponies started screaming, and the smell of burning flesh was made even worse by the various colours of dragon fire_-

"Eternity!" Twilight suddenly yelled, breaking me out of my thoughts, I jumped.

The dragon was in front of me now, looking a little concerned and scared, "Uh, are you okay?" He asked, looking at his feet.

I took several deep breaths, trying to steady my heart's frantic pace. I examined the dragon more closely, he was purple with green eyes and spikes to match, "This is Spike," Twilight said after a moment.

I swallowed, but couldn't think of anything to say, I looked in between my hooves and studied the ground. I heard Pinkie Pie hop up beside me, "Hey, we should throw a 'welcome home' party! We had one for Princess Luna!"

I grimaced, and to my surprise, Celestia shook her head, "That would be a bad idea, Pinkie Pie, although the thought is appreciated. Eternity needs to heal first before being put to the centre of attention."

Her voice made me shiver, but I couldn't look away from Spike. Most of my consciousness was trying to persuade me to believe that the baby dragon was harmless. The rest of me rebelled, trying to remind the rest of me of the war. Dragons had wiped out almost of the Unifliers. Unifliers were unicorns with wings, like Luna and Celestia, they were the only ones of their kind left. Unifliers had been wiped from history, like almost everything else. The unifliers had been Celestia's family, and she had wiped them all out because they posed a threat to her rule.

I could still see clearly in my minds eye the dragons burning everything, different colours reminding me of a twisted rainbow. The dragons had carried anyone of value off, like me. I was helpless, swordless, and completely out of my league when I had been carried off. Dragonfire still burned bright in my nightmares, and the dragons themselves watched the prisoners for weeks, until we broke.

I was broken out of my thoughts again when Spike poked me in the leg. I jumped, hissed, and growled at him. I crouched, and growled, using the combination of human DNA and pony DNA to my advantage. Spike looked stunned, and hid behind Twilight.

I stretched into my full height. I felt Celestia's wings brush against me, and I shuddered as a chill worked its way up my spine. Celestia stood in front of me, "That is no way to treat my subjects, Eternity. This is very impolite, and it is better if you treat your hosts with kindness and respect."

I bit my tongue, _what does she know about kindness and respect?_ Celestia looked at Twilight, "I hope you will take care of her for me, Twilight. Maybe she will learn her special talent and earn her Cutie Mark."

All the Elements gasped, "She doesn't have her Cutie Mark yet? She is as old as you, though!" Twilight gasped.

Celestia nodded sadly, "She has never been fully exposed the the magic that helps ponies find their talents. Maybe it is a good thing she is going to be with you seven. I must go now, Luna is expecting me."

With that, Celestia flew off, and left us alone, "lets get all your stuff into the basement. I think there's a bed down there," Twilight said suddenly.

Everyone nodded, and got to work; Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash carried my chair and mirror down while Rarity and Twilight started dusting off shelves, and Spike went in search of clean bedding. The bed looked comfortable enough, even if it was dirty. I spotted my mirror, and noticed how dirty it looked in the bright lamplight.

I sighed, and used magic to conjure a bucket full of water and a rag. I started to wipe some of the accumulated grime off and hoped no one would notice the unusual method I used for my magic. If anyone did, they didn't comment on it.

Soon, the room looked more habitable, and reasonably clean. Twilight thanked everyone as they left and I gave them weak smiles as they passed, "Thanks," I murmured to Twilight. I slipped off my makeshift pack and stacked my books on the dresser.

Twilight inched over, "You can look at them," I told her.

"What are they? I have never never seen them before."

I looked at her, and picked two books out of the pile, "read these first."

Twilight nodded, "Thanks," She left, back up the stairs.

I sighed, and stretched. I flung off my cloak and looked at the mirror. My normal reflection was still there. As I lay in the bed, I thought back to my life, before the Fall. I tried to picture what it was like before the war, and came up blank. I barely remembered my family, couldn't remember my name and was fighting for a memory that wasn't even remembered.

I searched my memory, looking for gaps. I searched and found large periods of time were missing in my memory. Much of my childhood, several large gaps during the war and my capture and eventual escape were gone. They were there, I knew it. It was like trying to find a word and coming up empty. It was on the tip of remembrance, but I was unable to.

I lay awake for several hours, trying to remember. I finally gave up and rolled over, but still couldn't fall asleep. I threw off the covers and crept up the basement stairs after putting on a large baggy shirt. I started looking at the books on the large shelves and decided I would see how much Celestia had changed history. After a while, I started taking jot notes on a piece of parchment. I had to write out my letters first, though. It had been such a long time since I had written anything, the quill felt odd in my hands.

I started reading in dim candlelight, but realized the wording, letters and almost everything else were different. I looked on the desk, and noticed the books Twilight took. There was loose parchment sticking from several them and a full inkwell nearby. Twilight had to be having the same trouble than. I started comparing the two, finding similarities and started to decipher what I was reading.

I worked well into the early hours of morning, and started making notes for Twilight so she could decipher my books. With my work in hand, I tried reading the book I had picked out again. From what I could make out of it, it was about how peaceful Equestria had always been, and that the only rulers had been from the same line of Celestia. It was said that Celestia was so wise because she is over one thousand years old and had ruled all on her own for most of that time.

I put the book down, and rested my head in my hands. Every single pony was had been brainwashed for years to believe Celestia was a good pony. Celestia seemed revered, almost worshipped. I had to break that belief, even though all the ponies had been relatively safe.

"Have you not been to bed yet?" Twilight's voice startled me out of my thoughts.

I looked up and smirked, "I tried, but couldn't. It feels really odd o sleep in a bed again."

"I tried to read your books. It's all different," Twilight said after a moment.

"I'm sorry, I should have realized there would be a language barrier. It's my fault. I found all the similarities and made a translation key. It's not in your language though, and I don't know how to explain it."

"Can you read it out loud?" Twilight asked, flipping her mane out of her face.

"No, it wouldn't be a good idea. The only thing I can think of it trying to do what I did. Compare and figure it out,' I shrugged, and rubbed my bad leg absentmindedly with one hand. I rubbed my eyes and stood. My knees cracked and I hobbled toward the basement stairs again.

"What happened to your leg?" Twilight asked suddenly, I looked down and realized that the large scar winding its what around most of my leg was visible.

"Long story, and I'm tired. I'll tell you when you can read those books," I replied. It would be easier to explain if she had a general idea of what had happened.

I stumbled down the stairs, and flopped back into the bed. My eyes slowly drifted shut as I saw the red of the coming dawn.

_.._.._.._

I awoke later, a bright beam of sunlight streaming into my sensitive eyes from the small window. I rolled over and almost fell off the side of the bed. I sat up, and blocked the sun with my hand. I stumbled over to the stairs and climbed them.

Twilight looked up from the table, "There's some fruit over there if you're hungry. I don't like these, they're too awful for stories."

I blinked, and picked up an apple, "They're not stories. These things happened."

"They couldn't have. I know all the books front to back. They're not real. They can't be, it's impossible," Twilight denied.

I shook my head, "You are so naive. Do you really think everyone is always perfectly honest?"

Twilight looked at me defiantly, "You are insane. I believe Princess Celestia."

I sighed, "Then you are doomed, as is all of Equestria."

Twilight looked at me, shocked, "I've talked to Spike. He says dragons wouldn't be put into a force like the ones described here."

"Not now, Celestia had trained dragons for hundreds of years before they were up to her standards," I shuddered, feeling the heat of a dragon's teeth wrap around me, cutting my leg open to the bone, "Believe me, please."

Twilight looked at me, "please," I repeated.

"I need proof," Twilight said after a pause.

I blinked, "There is no proof around here. It's been ravaged by time or Celestia."

"Well, then. I think it's better if you don't let anyone else what you think." Twilight left out the front door. I blinked, and sat down at the table.

The rest of the day, I researched using my limited pile of before the Fall books, and trying to cross reference with the library I had access to. Several hours later, I was enraged, confused, hungry and tired. I had never realized how disconnected I had become of what had been happening to Equestria.

Celestia had let almost all of the world become grown over, and uninhabited, keeping only Cloudsdale, Canterlot and Ponyville the most densely populated areas. There were many other cities, but Celestia only ever frequented Ponyville and Canterlot. She sometimes visited Manehattan, or Appleloosa, but rarely visited any other places.

I found a large roll of parchment and made two maps. One of the Equestria I remembered and one of both the new Equestria and the old. It was amazing, she had built many cities far away from the old ones or right where they had been. I ran a hand through my hair, she had been smart, many old cities she had destroyed after the Fall, or had let time and harsh climate take care of the others. I looked at the map, and realized I was missing the old capital. I grabbed my old, beaten up atlas and looked it up, hoping I would be able to read it.

I searched through it, then found it: Gallopville. I added it to my map, and looked at it in full. It was a messy mixture of the current language and the old. I could understand it, but I doubted many others would.

I sighed, and looked around. I felt slightly guilty; I had torn apart Twilight's library in search of anything useful. I looked at my own meagre collection, and wished I had been able to save more books. I had, at least, been able to write down a lot of information about anything and everything in the journals and notebooks I scavenged.

I rolled up the parchment and started to clean up the library, after a few more hours, I was bored again. I carefully opened the curtains, only to be blinded by light. I flinched, and hissed at it. Cursing my luck, I squinted at the square in front of the library. The large, stone fountain was there; it's water sparkling in the sunlight. I also noticed several shops, or maybe they were houses. I couldn't tell. Everything was so bright, it was unrealistic, and slightly disturbing to see a large population of ponies. I closed my eyes, and bathed in the warm sunlight for a while. I thought of my plants, and how they would soon wither and die. I thought about how to get Twilight to believe me-

Then, it hit me.

I needed to bring Twilight to someplace that Celestia hadn't done anything to. I knew of many hiding places we could use for shelter, and even some battlefields we could go to. But, first I had to eliminate the places close to the cities and surrounding area. It only took fifteen minutes for me to figure out where we could go.

We had to go to Gallopville, Dragon's Keep, the Battlefield of Lost Souls and, the Cemetery just outside Gallopville. There were many smaller villages I could show them, and at least fie good shelter spots to rest in.

The trip would take a week, but if I could get Twilight to agree, it would be perfect. I smiled, and leaned back in my chair. Now, I had a plan, and the war general that I had been hiding from within myself came rushing back.

He next few hours seemed like an eternity for me as I waited for Twilight to return. I ate more fruit than I normally did in a month, and paced tirelessly. I had tried to go to sleep, but found myself unable to. I had watched a sunset, and watched the activity in the square below die down. As I pony watched, I felt a slight rustle of doubt and guilt rise in my chest.

To these ponies, War, poverty and death that was not from accident, illness, or old age was entirely foreign to them. The ponies had always been safe, just lied to and brainwashed. The door slammed downstairs, and I rushed down the stairs.

All six of the Elements, plus Spike, were standing there. Twilight was looking at my map, and the circled destinations on it. She looked confused, then I realized she couldn't yet read most of my language. She looked at me, and her expression was confused and a little angry.

"You asked me to show you. I can, but it'll be a long trip," I said honestly, switching into my pony form.

"I don't know if I want to believe you. You're crazy!"

"Hold on, y'all!" the Element of Honesty spoke up, 'Y'can't go sayin' stuff like that. Twilight may be right, but Eternity might be too."

"Applejack's right," The Element of Loyalty but in. Her dark purple eyes burned with a fierce determination.

I fought to control a smirk, and surprisingly won, "If we do this, we'll need food, water and enough supplies for a week, maybe a little more than that."

"That's impossible!" Rarity exclaimed, "I just got my hooves done. I am not chipping them because of some camping trip-"

"Rarity, that's not nice.." The Element of Kindness broke Rarity off. _Fluttershy, that's her name, "_Besides, we're always trying to learn lessons. This could be one of them."

I suddenly loved the soft tones in which Fluttershy talked, when she talked, ponies had to listen. I suddenly had the urge to know all of their names, I knew their elements, but that wasn't good enough. Fluttershy was Kindness, Rarity was Generosity, Twilight was Magic, Applejack was Honesty and Pinkie Pie was Laughter. I struggle to remember Loyalty's name. It came suddenly in a flash, it was Rainbow Dash.

I had never been good with names, so I was proud to remember them all. It appeared I had missed some of the conversation, but hadn't missed anything important. I sat in a chair, half paying attention to the argument.

"Why don' we just go?" Applejack asked, "It'd get rid of all doubt! An', besides. It'll be fun!"

"She's crazy! She could be luring us into a trap!" Twilight argued back.

Annoyance, anger and a little shame filled my stomach. I snapped into a standing position and switched into my human form. Everyone turned to look at me, "If I wanted you dead or hurt, you would be already," I ground out, "I wouldn't be even suggesting this if I didn't think this would help you! This will be hard, but I need your help."

Everyone stared at me for a moment, before Rainbow Dash lifted her chin in defiance and determination, "I'm in!"

Rarity looked at Fluttershy, who nodded meekly, "We're in too."

Twilight looked at Pinkie Pie, who just giggled, and bounced happily on her hooves, "That means I'm coming too!" she exclaimed.

A small smile tugged at the corners of my lips, and we all looked expectantly at Twilight. She sighed in defeat, "Alright, fine."

Suddenly, the door banged open and three fillies came flying through the door. I jumped and growled in surprise. They stared at me in surprise, one of them giggled softly. One was a unicorn; white in colour with a light purple mane and tail, the next one was a pegasus, with an orange coat and a purple, spunky mane and tail. The lost one had a light yellow coat and a pinkish red mane and tail.

I noticed none of them had their Cutie Marks, and I relaxed. I doubted they could be a threat, "Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo! What are you three doin'?" Applejack asked.

The yellow coated one smiled a little, "We wanted to have a sleepover! But you guys weren' at home."

Applejack sighed, "Apple Bloom, I doubt it."

All the girls sighed, and looked at the ground, disappointed. Apple Bloom looked at me then did a double take, "Hey who are you?"

The orange furred one looked up, "Hey, I think you mean 'what are you.'"

"Scootaloo!" Twilight scowled, "That's not nice."

I snorted, so that left the white one, Sweetie Belle. She looked at me curiously, but didn't say anything.

"Why can't they have a sleepover?" I asked quietly.

"It's late, and Scootaloo probably hasn't asked her parents-" Rarity said.

"I did!" Scootaloo protested, "They said it was okay if it was okay with you guys."

"Who's going to take them, then? If we're going on that trip, I have to get ready," Rarity said snootily.

I sighed, how had she become the Element of Generosity was beyond me.

"I can take them," Applejack sighed, "We can have a sleepover in your fort."

The three fillies simultaneously squealed. I winced at the loud noise, but they ran out the door, Applejack soon after them. I smiled, and started going down the stairs to the basement.

The plan was going to work, I could feel it.

I heard someone follow me down the stairs. I looked back to see Twilight, "They seem like good kids," I remarked.

"They are, they're trying to find their special talents and get their Cutie Marks. They call themselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders."

"Do they have any idea on what their talents may be?"

"Sweetie Belle has the prettiest voice, Scootaloo is good at stunts on her scooter, and Apple Bloom is good at decorating," Twilight replied, "I hope you know what you're doing. If Applejack, Rarity or Rainbow Dash gets hurt, those three fillies will be devastated."

"I know what I'm doing. This is in the best interest for every pony in Equestria. We should leave soon, in a day or too. We can discuss details tomorrow."

Twilight nodded, and left. I sighed, and flopped onto the bed, pulling the curtains closed so I could sleep through the sunrise.

AUTHOR"S NOTE

How did everyone like this? I think the ponies are a little more in character this time, and now we know who each element is! The ponies and other pony related things that belong to Hasbro belong to Hasbro. I do not make any money off of this. Whatever else you see belongs to me, or my mom (She gives me ideas sometimes). Please review or leave a comment!


	3. Of Making Way and Weapons

"ETERNITY!"

I awoke with a start, the sunlight streaming from the window making me wince and flinch away. I didn't realize I was on the edge of the bed, and tangled in the blankets, fell over and onto the floor with an audible _thunk_.

I sat back up and tried to untangle myself from the blankets and sheets. I stood up, and stumbled up the stairs, still half asleep.

Shielding my eyes from the light, I squinted, looking around, "What?"

"You left the library in an absolute mess!"Twilight yelled from her room.

I blearily thought back to yesterday, "No, I didn't. I cleaned up, remember?"

"Don't blame it on me!" Spike exclaimed, "I didn't do it!"

"I didn't either!" Twilight exclaimed indignantly.

A deep, mysterious voice drifted from the other staircase. "You are here to separate lies from truth. I hope you're ready to prove your worth."

I turned to find a zebra standing there. I blinked, and wiped my eyes with my hand to clear the blurriness from them. I had thought the zebras had went into hiding and never left their island. She had large golden rings around her neck, and large golden hoop earrings in her ears.

"Zakora!" Twilight exclaimed, "What are you doing here?"

"Warning of coming doom, all this will happen soon," Zakora's deep, accented voice was strangely calming. She turned to me, "This test will be the hardest. I hope you're prepared for the consequences of your quest."

She turned, and left the library, leaving me dumbstruck. I blinked at the sunlight again, "That would be who made the mess, than. I'm going back to bed, we'll leave tonight. Let everyone else know."

"Do not let this make you face your doom, all you wish will happen soon," I heard from the bottom of the staircase.

I wondered why she had left her island. Not many zebras bothered with ponies anymore. They knew Celestia for what she is, and therefore, avoid her like the plague. Their culture was badly shaken by Celestia's war and the Fall, and after, they refused to help the pony economy and retreated to their island down south. I doubted anyone except Zakora could find the island now, the zebras have powerful, old magic.

I slipped back into bed, and closed my eyes. I tried to go to sleep, but found I couldn't. I stared at the wooden ceiling, wondering what my family had been like. I knew I had bought them their freedom, and they had left. When I thought about my mother, I only got a sense of warmth and a flash of blue magic. When I thought of my father, happiness and safety, with large green eyes.

I could remember siblings, but other than that I had had some, I had no recollection of them. I rolled over in annoyance, and found the sun had moved positions and was no longer blinding me. I watched the ponies from below, they seemed so happy. They were laughing, and seemed to have no cares or worries.

_I envy them._ I thought, _They're so carefree._ I watched them for a while. I watched the ponies' comings and goings, their interactions with each other and their environment. Feeling unhappy, I rolled over and shut my eyes, I needed all the sleep I could get if I was going to lead the Elements of Harmony to Gallopville.

_..._..._..._

I awoke when Twilight called my name, I looked outside and saw the sun was setting. I grabbed bag that Twilight had let me borrow, threw my things into it and went upstairs.

"Umm," I turned to find Fluttershy looking shyly at the floor, "I brought an extra sleeping bag."

"Thanks," I took it from where she gestured and put it beside my bag. I looked around, there was several small piles of bags scattered around, except for one pile. It was ridiculously large, "Who's stuff is that?"

"Mine," I turned to find Rarity looking proudly at her pile, "I brought everything I need for a week."

"What do you have in there?"

"The essentials, clothing, make up"-

"Those aren't essentials, Rarity!' Twilight called from her room.

Rarity gasped, "Of course they are!"-

I muttered a spell under my breath and pointed at her pile. Large sections of the pile lit up, "Those aren't essentials."

Rarity huffed indignantly, but did nothing, I raised an eyebrow, "Are you planning on carrying all those for at least a week?"

Rarity shuddered, "Of course not! Everyone's going to help-"

Something snapped inside me, probably my limited patience, "If you can carry all that, you can bring it! If not, sort through it and decide what you really need. Don't forget, we need food and water too." I snarled, I spun on my heel and started pacing.

My leg twinged, and I rubbed it absentmindedly. I could hear Rarity whining to Twilight, but Twilight would have none of it. We soon left, Spike in tow. We walked into the courtyard, and I looked around, how much time had passed since I had been brought here? I had no sense of real time, hadn't had one for years.

I shook myself, "Which way are we going?"

Twilight led us out of the city, stopping only at Fluttershy's cottage for some more food. When we entered the forest, everyone immediately tensed, and stuck close together, "As long as you stay on the trail, you'll be fine." I told them over my shoulder, trying to ignore my leg's protest to the quick pace I was setting.

After a while, Rarity started to whine and complain. I had to focus on where we were and where we were planning on going, but Rarity's complaining was starting to get on my nerves. I recognized the trail we were on as a trail that led to some ruins where I had stashed some things, including a dagger. I hoped the dagger was still in useable condition, I really didn't want to go deeper into the Everfree forest without some type of weapon.

We soon reached the crumbling, stone building. I walked into the building, and rummaged around a little, I found the covered hole, and unearthed it. I reached in, and pulled out the box. I murmured the spell to unlock it. The box popped open, and I pulled the dagger out. I pulled it out of it's sheath, and inspected it. It looked fine, and I pushed my finger into the blade. It was still sharp, so I stuck the dagger into my belt. I sucked on my finger to get the blood off, and murmured a spell to close the small wound.

I rummaged through the box, not entirely sure on the box's other contents. I found some rotted food, a small backpack with some pre-Fall artifacts and a hunting knife. I took the backpack and knife, sticking the knife on the hip opposite the dagger.

I left the box there out in the open, it didn't matter if someone found it now. I exited the ruins to find Pinkie Pie bouncing around the trail, gasping at some of the birds. Twilight seemed to be lecturing Rarity, and I didn't see Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy.

"Woah! What's that?' Rainbow Dash seemed to materialize out of nowhere and appeared right in front of me. She was looking at my dagger.

"It's a dagger, a weapon," I said patiently.

"Why do you you need one?"

"There are many dark things in this forest. Many of which would hurt or kill us as quickly as possible. Let's go, I want to cover more ground."

We followed the trail for a while longer, I had slowed my pace a little. My leg throbbed with each beat of my heart, and I found it difficult to concentrate on anything but the trail.

I was surprised when Pinkie Pie bounced in front of me and gasped at something she saw. She quickly bounced off the trail and I turned to follow, "Pinkie Pie!" I yelled, the name completely foreign.

I saw a quick flash of something black assault the pink, and I ran forward. Unsheathing the dagger, I plunged it into the beast's hide. The beast yelled, spun around, and knocked me over. It pinned my left arm to the ground, and I fumbled for something to hurt the beast with. I remembered the hunting dagger, and found it.

I used the edge to cut the creature, and blood spattered everywhere. The beast roared in pain, and jumped back. I scrambled to my feet, and stabbed the beast in the eye, even more blood squirting everywhere.

I retrieved my weapons, and stumbled away from the corpse. I made my way back to the trail, pausing only to clean the dagger and knife. I looked at everyone, noticing that Pinkie wasn't there, "Where's Pinkie?"

"Right here!" I turned to find Pinkie holding a flower in her mouth, smiling widely.

"Are you alright?' Twilight asked.

"Of course I am, silly! Why wouldn't I be?" Pinkie turned, and bounced up the trail. I shook my head and we followed.

I shook my head, _these ponies will be the death of me. _

..._..._..._...

We walked until sunrise, and stopped in a clearing. I sighed in annoyance, we hadn't travelled as much as I would like, but I couldn't argue too much. The sun that streaked through the trees burned my eyes, and I was finding it more and more difficult to not strangle Rarity. We had found a stream at around midnight, and I had washed off the blood and filled our extra canteens with water.

I looked around the clearing, and found a shady spot close by. I set up my sleeping bag, and started to look through the bag of artifacts. There was an electronic watch, harmonica, two books, and several report files.

I skimmed through the files, trying to remember how I had gotten a hold of them and why I had stashed them away. I found out they were my files, about the experiments performed on me, the various work I had done on dimensions, human culture and human anatomy. The charts showed my various injuries, scars, fighting skill, a statistic for how violent I was and a whole bunch of other things I had forgotten about myself.

It didn't say anything on my family, or about the resistance movement I had founded, but there was a catalogue of various mannerisms, habits, and other personal things I had grown out of. The more I read, the more I realized how much I had changed. I examined every inch of the files for some clue to my family, my role in the war, anything that stated I was a person, not just a scientific experiment that learned so much about the sciences.

A small piece of paper came loose, I looked at it and found it curiously blank. I cursed, remembering that I had hid notes everywhere I could in invisible ink for other scientists. I shoved the paper back into the file, and put the file back into the bag. The watch was broken, and I barely remembered how to play the harmonica.

I sighed and curled into the sleeping bag, I soon fell asleep.

_..._..._..._

I awoke at around midday. Pinkie Pie was passed out on top of her sleeping bag, snoring loudly. I looked around: Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Spike were asleep, but Twilight was nowhere in sight. I stood and stretched, enjoying the sounds of the forest.

I glared at the backpack, half-wishing the files would tell me who I am, "Twilight!" I called softly, trying not to wake the others.

"Come here!" Twilight stuck her head out of a break in the trees. I winced when I stepped into the sunlight, but hurried into the shadows of the forest.

Twilight stood beside a low, stone wall that was halfway covered by ivy, "What is this?"Twilight asked.

"It's a wall. There used to small villages all through this forest. It wouldn't be surprised if we find more of these things on our way."

"Ponies lived in this forest? That's impossible, there are too many dangerous creatures here!" Twilight exclaimed.

"There wasn't always. Many of the animals that live here were probably driven mad, or experimented on, making them dangerous," I explained.

"Why would she?" Twilight demanded, suddenly angry, "Why?"

"I don't know. She wasn't always bad-"

"Maybe she's good again!" Twilight lit up, "That's a possibility, right?"

I sighed, "I don't know."

"There's nothing to worry about then, why don't we go home?"

I shook my head, "No, even if she is good, our history needs to be confronted, not kept hidden."

Twilight deflated, "I'm not going to convince you, am I?"

"No," I turned, and stiffened when a purple light flashed around the forest, briefly lighting it up. I spun around.

Twilight's face was screwed up in concentration horn glowing a bright purple. I stepped back, starting to panic, "You're not taking this away from us!" Twilight shouted.

I used my own magic to erect a magic shield of my own. A bright purple light flashed, blinding me for several seconds. I blinked, trying to clear my vision.

I saw nothing, no ruin and no sign of Twilight. I let the magic shield drop, but placed a hand on the dagger. Cursing, I remembered I had left it near my sleeping bag. I crept quietly out of the forest to find Twilight sleeping beside Spike.

I blinked, rubbed my eyes, and looked again. Everything was as it had been, everyone was sleeping peacefully, even Twilight.

I strode over to my sleeping bag, and sat down heavily on it, feeling numb. _Did I just have an hallucination? _I wondered. _What is wrong with me?_

I rested my head in my hands, trying to think about earlier, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't seem to find any evidence to prove if something had happened or not.

"Are you okay, sugar cube?" I looked up to see Applejack staring at me in concern.

"I think I've finally lost it," I murmured, swallowing dryly.

"Why is that?"

"I think I just hallucinated," I admitted slowly, "But it's nothing, absolutely nothing to worry about." _Great, don't know if I'm trying to comfort myself or her._

Applejack didn't reply, but I heard some shuffling, and glanced around. Everyone except Spike seemed to be waking up. I took several deep breaths, and tried to focus.

After a while, we had breakfast and started out again. I kept an eyes on everyone, and hoped we would survive the whole way there.

I noticed a familiar looking plant, but before I could say anything, Rarity jumped forward, "Ooh! That looks amazing!"

"I wouldn't-" I started, before realizing it was too late.

The plant Rarity was approaching was a variant of the Venus Fly Trap on Earth. They had been experimented on, and were big enough to eat ponies. They had grown colourful fruit on a central part of a leaf on the ground, a pony would step on it and would get propelled into the mouth that had not changed appearance.

Rarity stepped on the leaf and screamed as she was propelled into the mouth of the plant. I pulled out my dagger, and looked at the extremely large plant. I thought against it, and started chanting under my breath.

The first spell was one to get rid of the acid the plant would use to dissolve Rarity, the second was to supply her oxygen. The third was one that dug the plant up by the roots.

When the plant was pulled away from the ground, the mouth fell open, and nothing came out. I was surprised to see none of the other ponies in a panic because their friend had been eaten by a giant plant.

I turned to find Rarity beside me, hoof resting on the leaf. I blinked, and rubbed my eyes.

"Why'd you kill the plant?' Rainbow Dash asked.

"It's a pony-eating plant. Rarity is stepping on the leaf that would have propelled her into it's mouth."

Rainbow Dash laughed, "You're kidding. Plants can't do that!"

Laughing, her tail brushed the edge of a similar leaf on the ground. The leaf threw itself into the air, ad the mouth of the plant opened.

Rainbow Dash yelped, and hid behind Twilight. I smirked, "Told you."

Fluttershy whimpered, but followed after us, trotting to catch up.

_..._..._..._

Author's note: More action next chapter, reach the first of the ruins on Eternity's 'little outing' for the ponies. Again, I do not own anything you recognize, and probably own what you don't. I am not making money off of this, and I hope you enjoy. Please leave a review below!


	4. Of Monuments and Keeps

"Oh! I think I chipped a hoof!" Rarity complained.

"Cool it," Rainbow Dash said dryly, "You can get it fixed when we get back!"

I rolled my eyes, but continued to concentrate on my footing. We were almost at our first destination; Battlefield of the Lost Souls. The battle that had taken place there was ancient by my standards. It had taken place when Celestia's parents had started their rule over Equestria. Some civilizations had not taken a liking to being ruled over one person, and had tried to gain back their old governments.

At the climax of the war, the two sides had fought dangerously close to Gallopville. We were only a few kilometres away from Dragon's Keep, and that was only two kilometres away from the city gate.

We were currently trying to make our way down a very steep, rocky hill. I could see the treeline that marked where the monument was, but Rarity was being as dainty as ever. Applejack was already at the bottom with Fluttershy and Spike, waiting for us. I was ahead, and Rainbow Dash and Twilight were helping Rarity down the most treacherous parts.

I rolled my eyes and carefully turned into my pony form, and flew over to where Rarity was having problems, "Quit whining, we need to keep moving, we're almost there."

"Easy for you to say, you can fly," Rarity said, stepping over a rock.

I rolled my eyes, "There are three ways we can do this. First, you hurry up and get down the hill. Two, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash carry you down, or three," I paused for dramatic effect, "I use magic to get you down. I would not recommend the third option."

"I'm not carrying her down," Rainbow Dash complained, "I'm too tired."

"And Fluttershy can't carry Rarity on her own," Twilight reasoned.

"I'm not hurrying up. I might get _dirty_."

I sighed, "Fine."

I flew down the hill, and when I made it to the bottom, transformed into my human body. I growled under my breath at all the time we were wasting, but got to work.

Using a stick, I carved several runes into the soft earth, and hoped I was doing everything right. After a moment, I gathered my inner strength and began to chant the words on the ground. I placed a hand on either side of the small line of runes, and watched in satisfaction as the words started to glow. I heard all of the ponies gasp in shock as Rarity suddenly vanished, and reappeared at the bottom of the hill.

I almost fell forward, but caught myself. I heard Rarity start to throw up as the effects of the teleportation began to take effect. I swallowed dryly, and dug around in one of my bags to pull out my canteen of water.

I swallowed several large mouthfuls before making myself stop. I watched as Fluttershy comforted her friend.

"Wow, I've never seen anything like that!" Spike exclaimed, "I didn't know ponies could do that!"

"Most can't, not without passing out from the strain," I told him, slowly standing up. I kicked dirt over the runes, "Let's go. It's just over there."

I felt listless, and slightly achy. I knew that was only because of the massive amount of magical energy I had had to expend to transport Rarity, but the knowledge did not make feeling bad any less easier to bear.

We entered through the overgrown mass of trees, bushes, and undergrowth to finally get into the slightly overgrown clearing. After so long, I had thought the place would be in shambles but it seemed relatively intact.

Rarity shrieked suddenly, making everyone jump. I made my way over, "What is it now?"

"I-it's a skeleton!" Rarity whimpered, pointing to a patch of ground with her hoof.

I looked over to find a part of one of the massive mass graves had been uncovered by time and the elements. More than one pony skeleton was clearly visible. I sighed, but said nothing. I could understand why Rarity was upset, although I doubted it was the same reason why I was slightly upset.

"What is this place?" Twilight asked, looking around; before her eyes landed on the almost fully covered monument that Celestia's parents had erected.

"Battlefield of Lost Souls. It was old when I was around your age," I began, "Tensions had been rising between the nations, and many of them wanted their old governments back. They attacked here because of it's closeness of the capital, and because it was easy to get here."

"Easy to get here?" Rarity gasped.

"Yes. They approached from the opposite way we did. This used to be a huge clearing with some trees and bushes."

"What's that?" Pinkie Pie bounced over to the monument.

"It was a monument Celestia's parents built, to honour the dead on both sides."

"Dead? You mean, ponies died?" Applejack asked, blinking slowly as if she were trying to solve a hard math problem.

"Yes, it _was_ a battle, why do you think Rarity stumbled across a mass grave here?" I asked, trying to keep my patience.

"How can you kill other ponies with pie?-"

"PIE? YOU PEOPLE USE PIE TO FIGHT YOUR BATTLES?" I shrieked.

"Well, yeah. We don't want to hurt anyone," replied as if the knowledge was a common one.

I shook my head, "Besides, there are plenty of ways to kill people with pie."

"How?" Pinkie asked, bouncing on the edges of her hooves.

"Well, hold someone's head in there and they can't breathe. You can break a pie tin in half and use it to cut someone, or stab someone in the eye. Pies could be a good distraction while you use something else to kill whoever you wanted to die," I said truthfully.

Twilight blinked and opened her mouth to say something, before closing her mouth and walking over to the vine covered monument.

"I might be able to uncover it," I said, desperately wanting to break the suddenly awkward silence.

"Can you? I'd like to make some notes on this," Twilight's eyes sparkled in the dim light of the small clearing.

I swallowed, and centred myself. I thought about my options. The spell I needed to cast would probably expend the rest of my energy, but I could bypass that using the energy of the forest around me.

Did I want to use _that_ black magic for something so trivial? Did I want to risk that again? I shook myself, I hadn't cast anything darker than a _darkness_ spell to extinguish candles in thousands of years. I would be fine.

I swallowed, and gently drew my dagger from its sheath, I would need some blood on the forest floor for me to connect to the land around me. I drew the dagger across my palm, digging into the soft flesh at the base of my thumb. Blood welled into the cut, and slowly made deep red lines across my pale skin.

I had forgotten what blood on skin looked like. Several drops fell onto the soft soil, and I readied myself. Using my blood as an anchor, I cast my consciousness out, looking for plants and small animals to drain. I avoided the vibrant colours that reflected the consciousnesses of the Elements and Spike. As much as I would like to drain Rarity, the others would hurt because she died.

I murmured the words that would draw the energy to all my consciousness touched, and then the words that would clear off the monument. I opened my eyes to see the undergrowth around me wither and die, just before several loud animal shrieks were heard. My heart started to race as I felt the connections die one by one.

I looked at the monument to see the vines and growth were little more than ashes. I swayed when the connections I had made finally died and the excess energy left as the last few animals died.

"What did you do, did you lose control of the spell?" Twilight asked me quickly, looking at the dead plants all around me in a wide, perfectly even circle.

"I didn't cast one spell, I cast two. One that drained the energy from the surrounding forest, and the spell to clear the monument," I explained, and gazed at the crumbling stone.

It was massive, the base was a huge pedestal with names carved into neat rows all over the sides. On top was a male pony, the commander of the city guard if I recalled the history correctly. He had died trying to defend the city he adored. I was happy with the knowledge he had died before knowing what had happened to his people. Only five years after the battle had taken place, Celestia's parents had died, and she began her reign of terror.

Maybe if he had survived, we could have had a fighting chance.

I shook my head, the rebellion movement had been dying since it started. The fact I had been captured when I had, ensured our loss. The guard captain would have died before I was born, and I was one of the 'greatest generals' the resistance movement had had, and I was captured after my fifth battle.

_Our cause had been a lost one then, now I have a chance. _

"What are all these?" Twilight asked, pointing at the names.

"Names of the dead. After the battle was won by the city, the resistance died. In an effort of peace, Celestia's parents built this monument to honour the dead on both sides."

"What happened?" Twilight asked.

"What do you mean? Celestia's parents were good ponies, it was after they died she went insane." I told her.

"No, I mean-"

"Different regions had different governments. Why do you think Zakora is the only zebra you've ever met? The zebra's islands are not considered to be part of Equestria, " Twilight blinked, confused. I sighed, and rubbed my forehead.

"The whole of Equestria wasn't always ruled by the same pony. Different regions were ruled by their own governments. Of course, this was a very, very long time before my parents were born, but we did have some books about the past."

"How do you know all this?" Twilight asked, "If Princess Celestia is so bad, why hasn't she hurt you?"

I shrugged, "I have no idea. My magic is very powerful, and I have access to much of the forgotten magic that she has no access too."

"How can you do magic, anyhow?" Applejack asked, "You're a pegasus, not a unicorn."

"Race has nothing to do with it. If you wanted, you could probably cast spells-"

"That's impossible!" Twilight exclaimed, "They have nothing to channel the energy through!"

I shrugged again, "I doubt you could do it, seeing your background, but it is possible with the right training."

Applejack shook her head, "Thanks, but no thanks."

"Anyway, I think we should get going. The next place we go is somewhere we can rest for the night."

"Where are we going?" Pinkie Pie asked, bouncing excitedly.

"Dragon's Keep. Gallopville's first line of defence."

"Why is it called Dragon's Keep?" Fluttershy squeaked.

I smirked, "That's where the Dragons bred and were housed when not in use. Don't worry, it should be abandoned."

Fluttershy's eyes widened, and she stuck right next to Rarity as we continued up the overgrown path, "A-are you sure?"

I nodded, and looked back, "Yeah. The dragon's hated it. I wouldn't be surprised if dragons stay as far away from here as they possibly can."

"Oh, okay," Fluttershy didn't look convinced.

We continued through the overgrown forest, I had a general sense of where I was going, but it wouldn't surprise me if I had to get Rainbow Dash to fly up and look around for the ruins. A few cobblestones could be seen peeking out of the grass, plants and trees, but it was barely there. I noticed because I was looking, but a normal pony wouldn't have.

After a little while we took a break. I asked Rainbow Dash to fly above the trees and look around. She nodded, and flew off.

"Why don't you fly?" Twilight asked, checking Rarity's hoofs for cracks and chips.

I stretched my arms over my head and rubbed the length of the scar twisting up my leg, "Flying takes a lot of energy. If I want to do large amounts of magic, I can't waste energy."

"How do you do magic, anyway?" Applejack asked, eating an apple.

"What do you mean?' I asked, slightly confused.

"You're a Pegasus, how do you connect to the magic? Unicorns only can through their horns, and it was thought only they can do magic."

I blinked, stunned, "Where did you get that?"

"It's common knowledge," Twilight said smartly.

"All ponies can do magic. It takes time and training until most can access it, but it's possible. I'm honestly not sure what connects me to the magic. I've always had it, but never really had formal training. I have a strong connection to magic, and one day, I got angry and the magic lashed out."

"What happened?" Rarity asked, "It seems awfully hard to train for something as trivial as magic."

Anger skittered down my spine, but I bit my tongue, "I broke his leg. It was an accident, but no one really believed it. My parents understood, they had had some training, but couldn't afford for me to go to any of the schools."

"How did you learn?" Twilight asked curiously, taking one last look at Rarity's hoof, she set it down.

"Any way I could. I stole books, talked to my parents, made deals with unsavoury ponies. That's also part of the reason why I joined the rebellion. I learned lots of combat magic, and realized I could access the magic around us more easily than some unicorns."

Rainbow Dash crashed through the trees at breakneck speed. She landed with ease, and boldly said: "It's over there!" She pointed with one hoof to her right.

I sighed, and rose to my feet, "Let's go. We'll stay there tonight."

Twilight and Spike shared a look, but Twilight let Spike hop onto her back, and we continued on.

Seeing the ruined building in front of me made me feel extremely old. The Keep was still standing, but the area around it was in ruins. Overgrown barricades surrounded the Keep.

"Rioting happened here after the Fall. It was just before Celestia destroyed the public records, and closed the city gates. People were angry at how she had handled things, and they tried to fight for freedom. It.. didn't end well. Celestia cast a huge spell that warded people off of the city and surrounding forest. Anyone who didn't leave quickly enough died."

"How did you leave?"

I searched my memory, but it was blurred, and fragments of other times mixed into the scary time, "I'm not sure. It's all a blur. The spell made sure ponies stay away from the Everfree forest, and stories warned away future generations from getting this far."

"Why aren't we being affected?"

"Well, a spell of that magnitude would take a lot of energy. I assume she had to let it go, or it's dissipated over the years. Or some odd mixture of both, long lasting spells can have odd effects on the land. Which is why many of the fierce creatures that exist now live in the forest. Wolves were caught in the long lasting effects, and timber-wolves evolved."

"What's a wolf?" Pinkie asked, bouncing in place.

"A bit like a timber-wolf, but with fur, flesh and blood; not magic and wood."

"Oh, okay!" Pinkie said brightly.

"Are-are you sure this is safe?" Fluttershy whispered.

"We'll be fine. Let's go investigate the building, then we'll go visit the nesting areas for the dragons."

The door had long rotted away, but the closed portcullis was still closed.

"Do you know any opening spells?" I asked, looking at Twilight.

"Yes," Twilight squeezed her eyes shut, and her horn started to glow a light purple. After a moment, the portcullis glowed the same colour and started to move up. After a moment, it grind to a halt, and Twilight grunted.

The portcullis suddenly ripped off of the wall, and blasted into the Keep. I blinked at the large hole that now extended the height of the door at least another foot.

"What was that?" I asked.

"I don't know, it's worked before."

I sighed and shook my head, "Let's go, we might as well find the barracks, I think it's on the second floor."

"What's a barracks?"

"Where the soldiers slept and kept their personal belongings," I replied, stepping carefully past the now very tall door. I summoned a few balls of light, and sent them zooming through the darkness ahead.

As we traversed the old ruins, I noticed that some of the walls had crumbled, and everything seemed to be in disarray, but otherwise looked alright.

As we neared the stairs, I was assaulted by memories of my capture, looking around, I found the staircase that led into the cells that the dragons had access to.

"_Let me go!" I screeched, twisting away from the ponies in human form. _

_They glanced at each other, and dropped me. I landed heavily on my side, pain lancing up my leg. I cried out, but bit my lip._

_One of the guards sneered, "This one'll be a fighter. I don't know why her Majesty wants her, but I'll be glad when she leaves." He pulled a device from his pocket, and pushed a button. Four walls of clear glass sprung up around me. When they settled, a glass roof extended from the ceiling, and was placed on top of the walls, completing the cell._

"_What do you want!" I yelled, trying not to jostle my leg that was still bleeding profusely._

"_Shut up!" The guard yelled, before sweeping out of the room and shutting the door._

"Eternity, Sugar-cube, are you alright?" Applejack asked.

I shook myself, "I'll be okay. Let's go upstairs."

After two flights of stairs, my leg felt as if it were on fire, but I bit my tongue, and kept silent. Going through the empty doorway, I directed the ball of light to the ceiling.

The light revealed most of the room to be intact. The metal bed frames and artificial mattresses looked untouched and ready to use. A corner of the ceiling had collapsed, letting in the light of the moon and stars.

"What is _that_?" Twilight asked.

I spun around, and my eyes widened. _How is that even running?_

LINE BREAK

Author's Note: HA! Finished another chapter. Sorry if you notice any missing 'I's. My keyboard is being a little bit of a pain, and sometimes doesn't register if I pressed it. Just let me know, and I'll see if I can get around to fixing it.

Thanks to my Dad for giving me the idea on how to end this chapter, and before I forget: anything you recognize probably isn't mine, and anything you don't probably is. Happy reading!


	5. Of Black Magic and Fairies

It was a golemn, run by a fairy. The golemn would run as long as the fairy was alive, but would die when it did. The golemn opened it's stone mouth and a fairy exited from the chamber it would be attached to.

She was small, even for a fairy. Her dress seemed to almost fall off of her, but she kept tugging it back into it's proper place. Her face was smeared with dirt and grime, and her purple eyes gleamed in the dim light.

"Ooh! Ponies should not be here! What if her Majesty found you? Hmmm? What then?"

My mouth dropped open, how could she _talk_? Most fairies had been silenced by powerful spells since birth 'so their loud voices wouldn't bother her Majesty'.

"What is that?" Rarity demanded.

Pinkie Pie bounced forward, "It's a fairy, silly!" Everyone, I included, stared at her in open amazement. Pinkie Pie thought for a moment, "We need to sing!"

I groaned, and so did Rainbow Dash.

"_Don't get me wrong,_

_I know we don't look very strong._

_We won't get hurt by a teeny fairy,_

_Even if it looks weak and hairy-_"

The fairy didn't look impressed. Nor did anyone else, for that matter. Pinkie giggled, "I thought that would work!"

I sighed, but before anyone could do anything else, the fairy flew back into the golemn. I stepped back, thinking about what magic I could use on it.

_I could kill it. It would be quick and painless. _

As the golemn creaked to life, everyone backed away. Spike clung to Rarity, and Fluttershy was attempting to hide behind Applejack.

I thought quickly, but couldn't think of the proper spell. Panic surged in my head, and felt the pressure mount behind my eyes. I squeezed them shut, going through the ancient magical words, seeing if I could make a spell that would accomplish the task.

The golemn swung madly at me, breaking through my thoughts. I yelled the first spell that came to mind: a very dark spell. It would cause the victim unimaginable pain for as long as the caster was chanting the words.

The fairy screamed in agony, and the golemn crashed to the ground. The golemn started thrashing around, and I continued the chant.

"Sweet nibblets!" Applejack yelled.

The black magic coursing through my veins made my heart race and brain fog. All I could think of was the chant, and how good the magic felt. A little voice in the back of my head was telling me to stop, telling me I should stop before something bad happened.

Suddenly, the screaming and thrashing stopped, and the magic abruptly stopped. It left me feeling cold and sick. Slumping to the ground, I finally realized what I'd done.

I had killed something using the blackest magic I had available. The aftereffects of such a dark curse, coupled with the blood magic earlier used, made me feel dizzy and lightheaded. I and watched in despair as blood started to seep from the golemn's eyes, mouth and nose.

I heard the sounds of several of the other ponies vomiting. I felt very much the same, guilt building in my chest. My breaths became laboured as pain, guilt and terror began to take hold.

"She's going into shock!"

My vision gave one last lurch, and I felt my head rush to meet the ground.

(LINE BREAK)

"_Don't let her go!"_

"_LET ME GO! TOBIAS YOU BASTARD!"_

"_You've used too much, you killed the informant. Do you understand what's happened?"_

"_I CAN'T HAVE! Celestia said the magic was fine!" I whined, moving my head to stare at Tobias in shock, "She said it wouldn't hurt anyone."_

_Tobias brushed a hand over my forehead, moving the sweaty black stands from the sticky skin, "You still trust her? How? You were a guinea pig, we rescued you and you left willingly. Do you remember why?"_

"_Something was wrong there, I don't know what-" I broke off, "The magic has never-"_

"_Eternity! Do not lie to yourself. You've been gone for so long, we never thought-"_

"_Please! It's all I have!"_

"Eternity!-"

_Tobias smiled, and turned to the other ponies in human form that had escaped with me, "Let her go. Go talk to Sparkle. He'll give you the tour."_

_The others nodded reluctantly, and left, "Eternity. I'm sorry, but we can't let you use magic until the black magic has stopped polluting your mind. This means little contact with others and you won't be able to leave the rooms we give you."_

_I shook my head, "nonononononono! I am not trading one prison for another!" I paused, stunned at the words that had left my mouth. Why had I said that? Why? The Princess had put a roof over my head, gave me food. All I had to do was worship her like the absent gods my parents had before. All I had to do was offer my body and soul-_

"Eternity!-"

_Tobias watched my internal struggle, and kept his hand on mine, "I know you can do this. Do you want to be alone?"_

_I shook my head furiously, making myself dizzy, "No! I-I can't stay here! Her Majesty will be disappointed!"_

_Tobias sighed, and pulled his hand away. He moved to the panel near the door. He pressed a button._

"_This is Tobias. I'll need help moving her to her rooms. Bring strong ponies. She'll fight."_

_Panic rose in my throat, I needed out. I needed Celestia's guidance, needed her wisdom. Needed something, _someone_, to believe in. To give my soul to, to blame if things went wrong-_

"Eternity!"

I shot up off the floor with a strained yell, sweat pouring from my skin. Shooting panicked looks around the room: I saw six ponies, and a pool of blood surrounding a downed golemn, it looked old and worn, _no wonder why the fairy died-_

Then it hit me. My mouth went dry, and I scrambled away. My heart in my throat, I looked around again.

"Woah Nelly! You alright, sugar-cube?" Applejack asked.

_They're all gone: Tobias, Sparkle, the others. _The memories that hit me, even if incomplete made me nauseous.

_Sparkle, screaming as dragon fire melted his flesh from bone._

_Tobias, wasting away from infection. Despite all our efforts, even after we amputated his leg- he died._

"Are you okay?"

I looked up from the cold, hard, stone floor, "No, but I will be."

(LINE BREAK)

I enjoyed writing the last part of this chapter. Not exactly what I had in mind for the end, but I just followed where Eternity took me.

It's been brought to my attention that some of Eternity's inner dialogue doesn't make much sense. I have to point out that that's the point. Eternity is not quite sane, and even though it makes sense to me (and her) it may not to you. If you have any questions or comments, you know what to do! PM or review and I'll see about answering. Happy reading!


	6. Of Cemetaries and Blocking

I had a difficult time trying not to look at the dried pool of blood. I was laying on one of the beds, trying to keep my breathing steady. As everyone else slept, I stayed awake, thinking.

_Celestia needs to believe I've been converted. The others should be okay, I won't tell them everything. Celestia will expect a little doubt in them after 'treating' me for a few months. Too bad Tobias is gone, he'd know what to do. _I shook my head, _can't think like that now._ _Tobias saved me once, now _I_ have to figure out what to do._

It would be difficult, using only enough dark magic to fool myself and Celestia most of the time. I couldn't fake the love and adoration that would be asked of me, so I needed to find a way to make them real. I couldn't act or lie, not for long periods of time. The black magic would allow me to feel the emotions I couldn't fake.

My hands started shaking at the thought._ The only problem is that I'll be walking on the edge of a knife. Too much will make me like I was back before I joined the rebellion, too little and Celestia will get suspicious. _Fear lanced it's way down my spine. _Celestia will know what type of magic I've been using just by looking at me, and may be suspicious. She's only seen me totally using black magic when I was her 'prize student' like Twilight. Wait a minute, what if Twilight's using black magic and doesn't know it?_

I shot out of bed and ran over to Twilight. I shook her awake, "Has Celestia ever taught you magic? I mean actually teaching you how to do something?"

Twilight's yawned, "Huh? Why?"

"This is important!" _If she's been using dark magic, I can simply absorb the energy the spells use instead of casting them myself. Still dangerous, but less addicting._

"One, why?"

"What does it do?"

"Extinguish candles and other light sources, why?" Twilight repeated, looking annoyed.

_Darkness spell._ I deflated, feeling stupid. _Darkness spells are the lightest form of dark magic there is. I couldn't absorb any dark energy from it at all._

"Never mind then, thanks."

I felt defeated, and a little more worried than before. I shook that off, and tried to go to bed. The rest of the night passed restlessly. I slept on and off, but never for long. I was asleep when the sun shone through the hole in the wall. I tried to roll over and back into sleep, but a sudden throb in my head made me groan and woke me up fully.

I squinted at the bright light streaming through the hole, and tried to ignore the pounding in my head. _Wow, black magic hangover. When was the last time I had one of these?_

I looked around, Spike was awake and making a breakfast over a fire pit he had probably made. The flames were green, telling me he had used his dragon fire. He was humming a cheery tune to himself, but the scene was ruined by the dried pool of blood and the lifeless golemn crumpled in the corner. I watched as Spike cooked, and found myself surprisingly hungry, despite the killer headache. I heard Rarity roll over and she whined when the bright light shone in her eyes.

Soon after, she woke fully. Rarity had barely put her hoofs on the floor before she started complaining. I shut my eyes, trying to ignore her loud voice.

"Has she woken up yet?" Rarity asked.

"Nope. I thought I heard her mumble a little in her sleep earlier, but no movement yet," I could almost imagine Spike giving Rarity a mock salute.

"Poor thing, we tried to wake her up earlier, while you guys were outside, but she only tried to fight us in her sleep," Applejack said quietly.

"We should wake her up, she's probably alright now. I wonder what that spell did."

"I-I don't want to know. I don't think anyone should know, Twilight," Fluttershy murmured quietly.

"I agree with Fluttershy, Twi. She looked awfully sick afterwords," Applejack said determinedly.

I peeked one eye open and couldn't help but groan loudly as the light seemed to pierce every pain receptor in my eyes, and shot them to my head.

"Hey! She's awake!" I heard Pinkie bounce over, "How are you feeling? What happened? What was with the spell? Is the fairy gone? Why was there all that blood?"

I slowly sat up, blocking the light with my arm. I brought my tired eyes to rest on Pinkie's bright blue ones, "Pinkie," My voice rasped in my throat, "Please, be quiet."

"Okie-dokie!" Pinkie bounced off again.

I sighed, and rubbed my forehead, trying to clear the fuzziness from my brain, "What's for breakfast?" I asked dryly, slowly standing up.

"Some oatmeal, and some hay."

I shakily walked to the fire, being wary of the green flames. Applejack shoved a bowl full of oatmeal, using one hoof, over to me. I picked it up warily, not sure how hot it would be. The bowl was pleasantly warm.

Rarity began to daintily eat her hay, while Pinkie Pie dove into her oatmeal sloppily. I sighed, and started eating the warm oatmeal. After a few minutes, Twilight cleared her throat. I looked up, "Yes?"

"What spell did you use last night?"

I winced, and shuddered as a sudden chill shot down my spine, "Don't ask, you couldn't do it."

"Why?"

"You've never had to fight for your life, the darkness required to cast that is far more than you can imagine."

Twilight sighed, "That doesn't answer my question!"

"I am not going to answer it, Twilight. This spell is something no one in this age should cast, even if they were able to. Today should be the last day of this trip," I changed the subject quickly, wishing to get the attention off of me.

"Where are we goin' today?" Applejack asked.

"The cemetery, then the capitol. It will be a long walk, and I want this to be done today, so we can't afford to waste any time," I glared at Rarity, "We should leave as soon as possible."

Rubbing my temples, and taking deep breaths helped the headache a little, and by the time we were ready to go, the headache was just a constant pounding behind my eyes.

Exiting the Keep, I looked around at the hills and cavern that had served as Dragon's nests for years. I sighed, but said nothing a we trudged up the overgrown path to the cemetery.

The cemetery was extremely large, and surrounded the path to the city gate. The only break in the seemingly endless tombstones had been the occasional farm. I led them through the debilitated roads, weaving in and out of the grave sites.

The others stayed as close together as possible, staring at their surroundings in surprise and horror.

"What is this?" Applejack asked cautiously.

"The cemetery. It extends around the city. Soon, you should see the wall."

"The wall?"

"Most of the city was carved out of a mountain. The city was built to protect, so they carved one gate and made sure to leave the sides of the mountain to use as walls."

As we climbed a hill, I saw the wall for the first time in a very long time. My mouth went dry, but I kept going. It was massive, rising almost to the clouds. The walls were sanded to be smooth, so ponies couldn't try to scale it. It was cracked, but looked almost the exact same as it had been. I paused for a moment, if only to stop Rarity's complaining.

"Oh dear, it's so dreadful! How did you _ever _manage to live here?" Rarity whined.

I shook my head, "I never lived out here, I lived in the city."

"How did they make that wall? It's massive."

"I don't know, magic probably."

Twilight looked at me, confused, "What do you mean you don't know?"

"I do not know how they made the wall," I repeated, "It was ancient when I was born. It has been lost to time."

"Are we going in now?" Fluttershy asked.

I shook my head, "No, we're going to the main part of the cemetery first, it's right beside the gate."

Fluttershy whimpered, "Okay," she whispered.

The rest of the way was silent, and I began to really feel the long lasting effects the magic we used around us. My nerves were strung, and I could feel all of the spells that had protected the city from the ravages of time. Much of the magic had dissipated, but it was still enough to set my teeth on edge.

The walk to the main part of the cemetery seemed like it was taking forever. When we finally reached it, I was exhausted, and had to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other. When we finally reached the entrance, the gate rotted away, I stood in shock.

There were so many more graves then I remembered, mind I had only seen it a few times before. The others gaped at the sheer amount of graves. I swallowed, and entered.

"What happened?" Twilight asked soberly.

"Lots of things. Accidents, disease, war..." I trailed off, looking at the blocks of stone that had long since lost the names engraved on them. All were broken and weather worn. In some spots, the elements had removed the soil, revealing coffins and bones peeking out from the dirt, "What we did was bad, but so many died needlessly."

"What is war? You've mentioned it a few times," Twilight asked, trying to keep her eyes off of the graves.

"The textbook definition is: a state of armed combat between different nations, or provinces or groups within a province. People kill each other for their country, or whatever they're fighting for. It's sad, and it's ugly, there was a lot of fighting... We were almost always fighting something."

"That's awful."

I nodded, taking in the overgrown, desolate landscape. I sighed, and turned around, "We should enter the city, if we can. If the gate is shut we won't be able to open it."

"Why?"

"Magic. It was deserted, and if the gate was shut, it'll be protected."

Twilight nodded, and followed me to the massive wall. The others trailed behind, taking in the overgrown scenery. It took a little bit longer to get to the gate. Do my dismay, all I saw was a simple, smooth wall, no sign of the gate I knew was there. I looked at the smooth, rock wall, with the tops of buildings peeking over it, and felt a sob wrack my chest. _All this for nothing?_

I felt a hoof rest on my shoulder, "I'm sorry, sugar-cube."

I shut my eyes, wrestling my emotions. I looked at a nearby tree, and muttered a spell. I poured my emotions into the spell, and the tree burst into flames. I heard Fluttershy shriek, and put out the spell. I glared at the wall, and gently probed at it with my magic.

I had barely touched it, when the magic protecting the city lashed back, throwing me backward and onto the ground. I landed heavily, knocking the breath out of me. I lay on the ground for a few minutes, catching my breath. I sat back up, and looked around, "We can't get in. It's guarded now."

Fluttershy sighed in relief, and Twilight looked a little worried, "I'll be fine. We came all this way for nothing..." I trailed off.

"Not for nothing. I don't believe the princess is as evil as you say she is, but you have proven she's been lying to us," Applejack replied.

I sighed, "Lets start back now. We'll forage for food on the way back."

I stood, wobbling as my bag leg threatened to collapse. I hobbled forward a few steps before finding my balance. I stared ahead at the path we had to take back, and sighed. _At least I proved something._

(LINE BREAK)

Author's Note:

This chapter is dedicated to my Mom, who's birthday just passed. Love you, Mom XOXOXO

Aha! Finished another chapter, very pleased with it! After this, I'll go through a bit more episodic tactic, following the series as much as possible. I may combine a few episodes, and I'll obviously skip some. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please R&R!


	7. Of New Beginings

We parted as a group when we entered Ponyville. I followed Twilight and Spike to the library, when we got there, I set down the sleeping bag Fluttershy had lent me. I grabbed my things, and went down into the basement.

I sighed, and flopped onto the bed. I felt emotionally exhausted, but felt better physically then I'd had in a while. I rolled over to face the window, looking at the ponies passing below. My eyes felt heavy, and soon they slid shut.

(LINE BREAK)

I woke up when it was dark, the night air dimming the brilliant colours outside. I stretched, feeling a little better. I stood, and went upstairs, everything was dark and quiet. _Twilight's asleep, then. _

I looked around, _what can I do until Twilight and the others wake up?_ The books were an obvious choice, but I wasn't interested in Celestia's lies. I rubbed my eyes, thinking. _I should go explore._

I left a note for Twilight, got a piece of parchment, a quill, and an ink pot. I went back downstairs, got my bag, and cloak. I walked out of the library, and breathed in the cool morning air. The sun was not even beginning to rise. I sighed, and looked around. The bright colours were muted, making it far more easy on my eyes, even outside.

I walked around the little plaza, taking note of the different houses. I found a small table, and scribbled the plaza on the parchment, and continued to explore. I stopped a few times, plotting everything on the parchment.

The sun began to come over the far away mountains, and ponies began to rouse, shying away from me cautiously. I ignored all of them, caught up in my exploring. Soon, however, I became helplessly lost.

Most of the streets were still empty, so it would take a while to find someone to help. I swallowed, looking around. At the end of the street was a large shop, that was bright and colourful. I walked toward it, unsure. A sign with a cupcake on it hung into the street. Under the cupcake was written: _Sugarcube Corner_.

I walked up to the door, and knocked quietly. I could see light coming from under the door. A blue pony with pink hair opened half of the door, "Sorry, dear. We're not open-" She broke off, taking my strange appearance in.

"Err. Hi. My name is Eternity, I live with Twilight. I got lost, do you know where the library is from here?"

"Of course I know where it is, sweetie. It's down the street to my left. When you reach the end of that street, turn right, and you'll be able to see it from there. I'm Mrs. Cake, by the way."

I smiled, "Thank you," She smiled at me, and I walked down the street she had directed me to. I followed her directions, and practically burst into tears when I was in sight of the library. I ran inside, closing the door behind me.

My knees suddenly weakened, and I hobbled to one of the chairs. I lowered myself into it, trying to settle my nerves and to calm myself down. I heard the soft sounds of hoofs on wood, and turned to see Twilight making her way from the bathroom. She smiled brightly, "Hi, where were you this morning?"

"I went out to explore, got lost," I swallowed the lump in my throat, "I haven't been lost like that in a very long time."

Twilight nodded, "I can show you around today, if you want. It probably won't be until later, though. I have to help Applejack at Sweet Apple Acres."

"Sweet Apple Acres?" I asked.

"It's her families' farm. She lives there with her brother, sister, and grandma."

I nodded, "Cool. When are we going?"

"Soon, after breakfast. I'm going to Sugarcube Corner to get something, you want to come?"

"Sure, is Spike coming?"

Twilight nodded, "Yeah. He really likes the Cakes."

"I met Mrs. Cake this morning. She was the one that told me how to get back here."

Twilight smiled, "That's really good. Everypony likes the Cakes. Spike! Are you coming?"

Spike ran down the stairs, small legs pumping, "Yes, Twilight!"

Twilight led us through the semi-crowed streets, with Spike resting on her back. I could feel everyone staring at me, but I swallowed, and ignored them. The bright sun stung my eyes, so I kept my gaze to the ground ahead of me, keeping Twilight in my peripheral vision. We reached Sugarcube corner quickly, and I ducked into the shop.

I inhaled, and realized how hungry I was. The air smelled of baked goods, most of which I had never seen before. I crouched in front of one of the display cases, looking at the large amount of pink frosting on what looked like a muffin, "Twilight, what are these?"

"They're cupcakes."

I nodded slowly, and looked around a little more. Cakes of all sizes lined one wall on a counter, pies behind them. Muffins were in a small basket beside the cash register. I looked around, asking Twilight about one baked good or another.

"Hello, Twilight!" A yellow stallion came trotting out from the back. He paused when he saw me, and he tensed. I smiled weakly, and he unfroze, "You must be Eternity. Honey bun told me all about you. I'm Mr. Cake."

"I'm Eternity."

He nodded, "What would you like, Twilight?"

"Well, I'd like one of your hay bagels. What do you want? I'll pay?"

I blinked, looking around at all the choice, "I don't know... I haven't seen so many of these things before..."

"Do you like sweet things?" Mr. Cake asked.

I chewed my lip, "I don't remember. I really haven't had anything like this in so long..."

Twilight sighed, "Pick three things, and you can try them."

I nodded, and pointed behind the counter, "What are those?"

"That's a cinnamon bun."

"Can I get one of those, a cupcake, and..." I paused, "A croissant?"

He nodded, "Alright. Does Spike want anything?"

"Can I get a blueberry muffin?"

"Of course, is that all you want, Twilight?"

"Yes please," Twilight pulled out a small coin purse from the saddlebag she had brought.

My cheeks flushed bright red as she counted out some gold, silver, and copper coins. _She can't be that poorly off... Can she?_ Shame built in my chest, "Twilight, you don't have to-"

"I want to, it's not a problem, I've got lots of bits."

I blinked, "Huh? But, don't you have accounts?"

Mr Cake took the money, and put it into the cash register, he started putting everything in small baggies. Twilight looked confused, "What are you talking about?"

"Carrying money is signalling that you are extremely poor. What are bits?"

Twilight's eyes widened and her eyes flashed with understanding, "Bits are the gold coins. Spurs are the silver ones, and buckles are the copper ones. There's four spurs to a bit, and one hundred buckles to a bit."

I blinked, "Okay?"

"There are twenty-five buckles to each spur."

Something clicked, "Oh. A bit is a dollar, a spur is a quarter and a bit is a penny."

Twilight looked confused again, "huh?"

"The old monetary system. Nevermind, forget what I said." I jumped when Mr. Cake suddenly moved around the counter, cleaning some of the glass on the display cases.

I looked, and all the baggies were resting on the counter. Twilight picked her bagel and Spike's muffin from the pile. I picked up my pastries, and followed them back outside. Twilight found a table, a giant mushroom, just outside. I sat down on the chair, and opened the first baggie.

It was a deep brown pastry, covered in a thick white substance. It smelled sweet, and was warm in my hand. I carefully bit into it, and winced at the sweetness. I pulled back, licking the corners of my lips. Spike smiled at me, "Do you like it?"

"I- I dunno. It's so sweet..." I took another bite, the flavours exploded on my tongue, "It has more taste then what I'm used to."

Twilight smiled, and pushed a small square of a papery substance toward me, "Get the frosting off your nose," I blinked, and wiped at the tip of my nose with a finger. _Frosting, that's what this white stuff is called._ I licked it off my finger. Twilight rolled her eyes, "Why don't you use the napkin I just gave you?"

I picked up the square, and wiped at my nose and mouth. _This is a napkin..._ I was suddenly struck with how little I knew. I swallowed past the nervousness, and enjoyed the rest of the cinnamon bun. The next thing I pulled out of the bag was the cupcake. The pink stuff was sweet, but not as sweet as the frosting on the cinnamon bun.

"That's frosting, too," Spike said, "It's a different kind, though."

I nodded, biting into the cupcake. I finished it, but felt full, fuller then I had been in a long time. Despite my curiosity, I doubted I could eat the croissant. I took a bite, anyway, figuring I could save the rest for later. It was flaky, and crisp, and buttery.

I stowed the rest in my own bag, and followed Twilight out of the city, and into the area around it. The path was well worn. Trees and fencing was on each side, and as we travelled more, the trees became apple trees.

Soon, we approached several buildings. There was a chicken coop, a barn, and a large house. Appleack was talking to a large red stallion. She finished the conversation and walked over, "Hello, y'all!"

"Hi, Applejack!" Spike said.

"Hi, Eternity."

"Hi."

"If y'all are going to help, we'll be done in no time. Err, I don't suppose you can apple buck, can you?"

"Huh?"

"We buck the apples off the trees, it's called apple bucking. I don't suppose you can, with your leg."

I shook my head, "Unlikely. It's throbbing from the walk here, much less bucking a tree."

" 'Sides, you'd have to change into your pony form.. Apple Bloom, what are you doing?"

I turned to find the three young fillies behind me. Apple Bloom was holding a notebook in her mouth, and Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both looked guilty. Scootaloo had a pair of binoculars hanging from her neck, "We want to get our investigative Cutie Mark!"

Applejack blinked, "By investigating what, exactly."

"Her!" Scootaloo pointed to me with a hoof, "Everyone wants to know what's going on."

I felt my cheeks burn, and I looked down at my feet, "Apple Bloom! You apologize right now!"

"I-I'm sorry," Apple Bloom was staring at the ground, looking ashamed.

" 'Sokay..." I murmured.

"Now, get along. I've got to get some of the trees cleared."

Apple Bloom and the others left, and Applejack led us into a small field, that most of the trees had already been picked of all of their fruit. Applejack strategically placed several buckets under a tree, and bucked the trunk. Apples fell into neat piles in the buckets. Twilight began to use her magic to get the apples and put them into the buckets. I used my own magic, and Spike pushed full buckets near each other.

A few hours later, we had four full, larger buckets. They were strapped together for easier carrying. Twilight used magic to get them on her back, and Applejack lifted them using her own strength.

Soon, we made our way back to the farm. Twilight's stomach rumbled, and she smiled, "We worked really hard."

All of a sudden, Spike belched. Green dragon fire lit the air, and I dropped to the ground, covering my head with my arms. Panic and fear flashed through my spine, making my fingers tingle.

"Are you okay, Sugar cube?"

I lifted my arms to see Spike and Twilight looking at me like I had grown another head. I swallowed, "Sorry."

Spike unrolled a scroll that had appeared in his hands. He cleared his throat, "Dear Twilight Sparkle. As you know, the Grand Galloping Gala is soon. Enclosed are two tickets. I want you and one of your friends to come."

Spike belched again, I winced, but didn't look away. Amidst the flame, two golden pieces of paper appeared. Spike cleared his throat again, "Please respond as soon as possible, I hope to hear from you soon. From, Princess Celestia."

"The Gala!?" Applejack exclaimed, "Do you know how much money I could earn if I set up a stall? I could replace Bic Mac's saggy old plow, or the saggy old roof! Or even Granny's saggy old hip! Please, take me Twilight!"

"Ugh.." Twilight looked a little confused, trying to keep up with Applejack's fast speech. I slowly climbed to my feet, wincing as my leg twinged.

"Please, Twilight! It would help us so much!"

"Well, o-"

Rainbow Dash suddenly swung down from the trees, "Did I hear about the Grand Galloping Gala?"

"Well, yeah-" Twilight said.

"I've always wanted to go! The Wonderbolts are there every year! I could impress them with my awesome moves, and they would let me become a Wonderbolt!"

Twilight's stomach rumbled, "I need to figure out who I'm giving it to. I'm going to decide over lunch." Twilight set the buckets of apples down, and ran down the road, Spike clinging to her mane. I stared after her, mouth hanging open.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash were staring at each other. I slipped away, into the woods. The cool forest made me feel more at home then any place I had been to. I found a small path, and followed it. It led me deeper into the woods. I rounded a bend, and came across treehouse.

The treehouse was medium sized, decrepit, and old. The three fillies from earlier, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo were there talking. I cleared my throat, and Scootaloo jumped, spinning around.

I smiled, "Hi."

Scootaloo flicked her mane out of her eyes, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Twilight ran off," I shifted my cloak to reveal my scarred leg, "I would never be able to keep up."

Sweetie Belle's eyes widened, "What happened?"

I hesitated, thinking of a suitable lie, "It was an accident."

"I'm sorry."

I smiled, "It's okay. I've had it for a while, it's not a big deal anymore."

"You wanna stay with us?" Apple Bloom asked, "You could tell us how you got your Cutie Mark!"

"How do you know she even has a Cutie Mark?" Scootaloo butted in, "She's not a pony!"

"Zakora's a zebra, and she has a Cutie Mark!" Sweetie Belle butted in.

"I am a pony, I just have the ability to change my shape!" I exclaimed, their argument grating my nerves.

They turned, staring at me in amazement. Scootaloo recovered first, "Prove it!"

I sighed, and concentrated on the magic that ran through my body. For once, I took my time, slowly following the lines of magic deeply ingrained in my being. I slowly took a hold of it with my mind, and tugged. The flood of magic was instantaneous, turning me into my pony form.

The three fillies stared at me, open mouthed. Scootaloo blinked, "Wow."

I smiled, "Why do you want to hear about my Cutie Mark?"

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom snapped out of their stupor, "We're the Cutie Mark Crusaders! We want to find our special talents, and earn our Cutie Marks!" Apple Bloom exclaimed excitedly.

I blinked, "Really? Why aren't there more of you?"

Sweetie Belle looked down at the ground, "We're the only ones in school without our Cutie Marks."

I nodded, "That's why you want to figure it out."

All three nodded. I sighed, "I don't have my Cutie Mark."

All three gaped at me, "Really?" They all asked in unison.

I nodded, and moved the cloak over to expose my blank flank, "Really."

"Do you want to join?" Sweetie Belle asked excitedly.

"Ugh... Sure?"

All three cheered in joy, "That means you can help us with the treehouse!"

I blinked, "Sure?"

The three fillies beamed at me, "We need to do some chores at the farm first, will you help?" Apple Bloom asked.

I nodded, wondering what exactly I had gotten myself into. I turned back into my human form, and followed them back to the farm. The red stallion Applejack was talking to earlier smiled.

"Hi, Big Mac!" Apple Bloom called, "You doing okay?"

"Eeyup!" Big Mac's voice was deep.

"That's good!"

We walked into the barn, "What are we doing?"

"Moving all these buckets over to the side, over there, and rolling those barrels up near the door. We'll be making cider soon."

We started working, the girls tackling the buckets, leaving me to move the barrels. I carefully used discreet magic to help me roll everything near the door. My leg began to throb with more ferocity, and I took a break. Leaning against the wall, I watched as the three fillies bickered over their work.

I smiled. _Maybe I can fit in here after all._

(LINE BREAK)

Author's Note: I'm posting this in honour of Mother's Day, even if it is a day late. Love you, Mom.

I used this chapter to set up the next few. If you guys are rabid fans, I bet you can guess which episodes I'm doing soon. As you can guess, I'm doing several at once, and skipping some. Not all of them are in order, but I'm planning on keeping the general plot base the same.

Please R&R to let me know what you think. PM me or review any questions/comments/etc.

I still don't own MLP.


	8. Tickets and Sickness

I stood, wincing as the muscles in my leg twinged. I hobbled toward the fillies, figuring I could at least help. The three were still bickering incessantly about something trivial. I wasn't entirely sure what about, but decided I should listen in as I helped.

"We can't do that on Tuesday!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed, "We have to help Mayor Mare organize her office!"

"But I thought we were going to help Pinkie Pie bake the cinnamon rolls that day!" Apple Bloom whined.

I smirked, trying to control the laughter threatening to bubble up. I bit the inside of my cheek, and kept listening.

"That's not right, we're helping Pinkie tomorrow!"

"No, we're helping Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo fluttered her wings furiously.

"You might be able to, but Apple Bloom and I can't go bust clouds!" Sweetie Belle said loudly, shoving a bucket next to a full pile.

"Can you imagine me getting a cloud busting Cutie Mark? How awesome would that be?"

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes, and lifted her bucket to fit in Sweetie Belle's. I lifted mine, and nestled it inside Apple Bloom's. The three continued to argue, and soon we finished stacking up the buckets into neat piles.

Apple Bloom's stomach rumbled, and her cheeks burned red, "heh heh. I guess I'm hungry."

"So am I," Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle replied at once.

They turned to me, "You can have lunch with us, if you want," Apple Bloom smiled.

I nodded slowly, "Okay.. Thanks."

They led me into the large house. Immediately, a smell of something baking overwhelmed my nose, and I realized how hungry I was. I walked in, and looked around. The house was very lived in, pictures lining the wall, and a sense of organized chaos prevailed. I smiled, this was the most home-like place I had been in.

We walked into a kitchen, where an old green furred mare was setting a table. She looked shaky on her legs, but her large eyes were focused on their task. She looked up, "Oh, Apple Bloom-" Her voice stopped as she took me in.

I smiled, and waved, "I'm a friend of Twilight's."

The mare nodded, "Ah. I take it Apple Bloom invited you to lunch?"

I nodded, and she smiled, "I'm Granny Smith."

"I'm Eternity."

She turned back to the stove, stubbing her hoof on a counter, "Pony feathers!"

"Are you alright, Granny? Do you need some help?" Apple Bloom asked.

"I'm alright, dear."

Apple Bloom sat at the table, as did the others (except Granny). I followed suit, not sure what I should do. Granny set a few more plates on the table, and sat down herself. Everyone dug in, grabbing things from the plates. I swallowed, wondering what everything was.

There were squares of something with green frosting and apple slices on top. I carefully took one, figuring I at least knew what frosting tasted like. Apple Bloom seemed to sense my apprehension, and smiled, "That's an apple tart."

I nodded, "Okay.." There were hay sandwiches, I got one of those as well. I ate the sandwich, wishing I knew what everything else was. I finished the sandwich and tart, wincing at the over sweetness of the whole thing.

Apple Bloom plopped a warm looking ball of dough that was golden brown, "This is a apple fritter."

I bit into it, and a warm gooey substance gushed out. I felt my amazement grow as I bit into a slice of softened, sweet apple. I licked my lips, getting the golden brown, sticky liquid off my mouth. Apple Bloom smiled, and I smiled back, "This is good."

"You're so tiny, dear. Eat what you want," Granny finished off her plate.

"Thank you, but I'm full."

Granny peered at me through a narrow eye, "I'll bag some up for you to take back to Twilight's. I take it you'll be back?"

"I'm helping the girls with the treehouse."

"You'll be back then, I'll give you some leftovers then."

I nodded, "Thank you, but you don't need to-"

"You're a friend of Applejack's, and Apple Bloom. I don't mind, dear."

I smiled again, "Thank you," I felt a lump begin to form in my throat, but tried to swallow it. I got up from the table, "I-I-"

"The bathroom is down the hall and to the left."

I hobbled as quickly as I could, and slammed the door behind me. As soon as I was alone, the tears surged forward, drenching my cheeks. Sobs wracked my thin frame, and I collapsed into the door, burying my head in my arms.

My body shook with the sobs as the last day played through my head. Everyone had been so nice, even though I was so _different_ from them. They helped me when I had no idea where I was, and when I didn't know what something was.

I couldn't have hoped for something different.

Soon, the sobs stopped, and I carefully climbed to my feet. I swallowed thickly, trying to steady my breathing. My head felt like it was filled with cotton, but I felt better mentally. I rinsed my face and hands in the sink. I looked up, staring into the mirror.

My green eyes were more lively, and my cheeks a little less hollow. I smiled, my teeth were still crooked and yellow. _Nothing I can do about that now. _My tangled hair fell into mats about my shoulders, still hopelessly tangled. I wiped my face again, and quietly entered the kitchen again.

Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Bell were still waiting. I looked down at my feet, but they didn't say anything, they just led me to the road, "We need to get into town to get the supplies we need for the treehouse. Do you want to come?"

I nodded, "Please."

"We need to stop at Rarity's first, she'll give us some money to help us buy everything we need," Sweetie Belle said cheerfully.

"Rarity? Why Rarity?" I fought hard to keep the scorn from my voice.

"She's my sister," My jaw hung open, but I quickly snapped it shut. Sweetie Belle laughed, "I suppose you didn't think Rarity had a sister, did you?"

I shook my head, "No."

The conversation died down as we approached town. We soon realized most shops were left unattended and open. I felt worry build, _What's going on?_

We rounded the corner to see the plaza with the library. A crowd of people and Pinkie Pie held a large amount of something in between them. On top of it was Twilight, who was being thrown in the air by way of the sheet. I stopped and stared, stunned.

"_Twilight is my bestest friend! Whoopie, whoopie-_"

"Pinkie!" Twilight interrupted.

"_She's the cutest, smartest, all around best pony, pony-_"

"Pinkie."

"_I bet if I throw a super-duper fun party, party-_"

"Pinkie."

"_I bet she'll give her extra ticket to the Gala to me!_"

"PINKIE!" Twilight shouted.

The ponies backed away, dropping the sheet. Twilight fell to the ground, _hard_. I winced, "Ouch."

The three fillies nodded, "Yup."

I watched as Twilight picked herself off the ground, angrily she turned to Pinkie, "At least the others are being somewhat subtle!"

"But Twilight, I want to go to the Gala!" Pinkie whined.

The crowd started to mutter, "The Grand Galloping Gala?" Someone asked.

A pony shouted above the others, "Twilight! Have I ever told you how much I love your mane?"

"I'll water your garden!" Another pony yelled.

"I'll clean your house!"

I backed away a few steps, not sure what to do or think. The slight nausea I had been fighting since lunch kicked up a notch, but I swallowed, thinking about the scene in front of me. Twilight suddenly vanished in a flash of light, the ponies retreated a little, looking around. A pony stood on her hind legs, "There she is!" She pointed down a side alley with her hoof.

The crowd took off, making offers and requests. Some were simply shouting, "The Grand Galloping Gala!" over an over.

"I think I'm going to go in the library to wait this out," I said flatly, staring at the spot where the ponies had been. The sheet lay on the cobblestones, forgotten, "You can come if you want."

The three fillies nodded, and followed me into the library. The main room of the library was lit by the sun streaming in the windows, a toppled bowl of salad was on the floor. I felt the nausea surge, and I pointed to the basement stairs, "Go downstairs to wait it out."

The three ran down the stairs, and I turned on my heel, and flung myself into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me. I leaned into the toilet, and retched heavily, emptying the contents of my stomach. After a few minutes, I started to dry heave. The nausea subsided, and I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

I swallowed thickly, and flushed. I stood on shaking legs and walked to the sink. I washed out my mouth, and washed my face with water from the tap. I looked into the mirror, my pale face stared back at me. My black hair was plastered to my face, neck and shoulders. I winced at my haggard appearance, but couldn't bring myself to care.

I felt hot, and uncomfortable. Using shaking hands, I fumbled at the clasp on my cloak. After a moment, I managed to get it off, and let it slide to the tiled floor. I slipped off my bag, and climbed in the bathtub. I stared at the controls, and wished Twilight had shown me how to work it. I curled into the bathtub, letting the cool porcelain do it's job. The coolness of the tub seeped through my thin tunic, making me shiver as my temperature lowered.

I jumped as the door leading outside slammed open, and then slammed shut. The lights from outside the bathroom shut off. I shuddered again, feeling suddenly cold. The cool peace was suddenly broken.

"ARGH! I don't know who to choose! I can't just choose one of you, because then the others will be upset. I can't give up my own ticket, because then no one will be happy! I just can't do this anymore!"

I heard the mutterings of more voices. _They're the Elements._ No one was shouting anymore. A flash of green dragon fire made me jump, and shut my eyes. _How did the dragons get here? _I opened my eyes a little, and peered over the edge of the bathtub. Another flash made me duck my head down into the bathtub again.

"Applejack!" Apple Bloom's voice called cheerfully.

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack's voice was slightly scolding, as if she expected the next thing to come out of Apple Bloom's mouth was something bad.

"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity's tone was similar.

"Hey! Where did Eternity go?" Scootaloo asked, "She was here a couple minutes ago."

I swallowed, and climbed out of the tub, realizing I probably needed help. I clawed at the doorknob until the door swung open. I leaned against the door frame, legs sprawled out in front of me, "Hi," my voice was hoarse, and weak.

"Ew," Rarity said, wrinkling her nose, "Does she have vomit in her hair?"

The Elements glared at Rarity, she cleared her throat and looked ashamed. Applejack trotted over, "What's wrong, Sugarcube?"

I shrugged, "I dunno... Just feel sick."

"Fluttershy, can you go get Zakora? Rarity, can you help me get her downstairs?"

"But she has throw up in her _hair_." Rarity whined.

Twilight rolled her eyes, "You helped Sweetie Belle!"

"That's because she was clean, and got it just in the toilet."

I snorted, trying not to laugh. _These are the embodiments of Magic and Generosity. This should _not_ be a problem._ They turned to me, and I smiled weakly, Keep me up here. If I need to get sick, it'll be easier for everyone if I can get to the bathroom quickly."

Twilight nodded, and bent her head down so I could grab her mane, and haul myself to my feet. On shaking legs, we managed to deposit me on the couch. I sighed in relief, shutting my eyes. A blanket was draped over me, and a pillow was slipped under my head.

I heard the door gently open, and I opened my eyes, wishing I could just shut them again and go to sleep. Fluttershy led Zakora in the room, the zebra dressed in a black cloak with saddlebags draped over her back.

"What's wrong with her?" Twilight asked.

Zakora set the saddlebags down, and took off her cloak. She ignored Twilight, and checked me over, using zebra magic and science, "Eternity is quite sick, but I believe bed rest will do the trick."

Her deep voice relaxed me a little. Suddenly a little cold, I shifted the blanket tighter around myself. I shuddered as a cold draft wafted near my feet. I realized then how tired and weak I felt, "Please help me."

"I will, dear one. I will not leave until my task is done," Zakora reassured. She pulled a potion in a purple bottle from her bag. She gently dropped it in the palms of my hands.

I looked at it curiously, "What is this?" I pulled the cork out and sniffed it. Nothing I recognized, definitely no poisons I recognized either.

"A potion I made to help you sleep. It will send you to a place where nightmares do not creep," Honesty and truthfulness sparkled in her teal eyes.

I downed the bitter potion in one go. The effects were immediate; my stomach settled, I felt cooler, and I felt my body temperature lower by a degree or two. My eyes slid shut, feeling like weights were attached to them.

I felt Zakora take the bottle, "Sleep well, my friend. You will soon be on the mend."

(LINE BREAK)

"Her fever's too high. What do I do?"

"Give her water, and plenty of rest. All we can really do now is hope for the best."

(LINE BREAK)

"Spike, take a letter. Dear Princess Celestia-"

_Celestia? Is she sending dragons? So many colours blurred together... Screaming as flesh was seared from bone..._

"..is really sick. We don't know what to do..."

_That's easy, kill them. Dragonfire spreads infection so easily, it means death to all who touch it._

".. know I'm asking a lot, but can you come help her?..."

_Don't bring her here, she'll get the dragons back..._

(LINE BREAK)

"Her immune system and magical cores are being attacked," _Why is Celestia here? She should be killing innocents, not looking after sick rebels..._

"By what?"

"I can't be sure, Twilight," _You're so lying. Even I can tell_, "Exposure to the new magic, perhaps."

"Can you make her better?"

"No, Twilight. She has to get better on her own. I will help make her comfortable, but that's the only thing within my power to do."

_She cares? Why does she care for a traitor like me, doesn't she know what I've done? Why...?_

(LINE BREAK)

Awareness slowly woke me up. I swallowed dryly, my throat feeling like sandpaper. I mentally categorized my body. _I can feel everything, that's always a good thing. Everything feels like lead, but I don't feel too cold or too hot. What happened?_

I pried my eyes open, despite the fact they felt like they were weighed down by lead. Evening sunlight was mostly blocked out by curtains, I shuffled over, rolling to my side. I heard the sound of hooves on wood, and Twilight appeared in my line of sight. She smiled brightly, "You're awake!"

I nodded, "Water," My voice was nearly non-existent. Somehow, Twilight heard me, and levitated a cup of water and a straw to me. I sipped it, unsure of what exactly was wrong. The water was cool, and soothed my throat.

Twilight took the cup away, "How do you feel?"

"Tired and weak... What happened?" My voice was a little stronger, but hoarse.

"Your body was attacked by the new magic...that's what Celestia said, anyway."

I nodded slowly, it made sense. The magic I was suddenly surrounded by, I had only encountered a few times before. The air of Ponyville was swamped with magic. My darker magic had reacted to all of the light magic it had never been subjected to before.

"Is everyone alright?" I croaked.

Twilight nodded, "Everyone's fine. Princess Celestia came to see you, she left the next day."

"How long have I been out?"

"A week. Celestia came the day after you fell unconscious. She made sure that you didn't have something else wrong with you before she left."

I nodded, and a sparkle from a nearby desk caught my attention. Three pieces of golden paper were lined up neatly on the table. They were the ones Spike had gotten with the letter from the Princess, "What are those?"

Twilight followed my gaze, "Tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala. We all got one."

"The Grand Galloping Gala? What's that?"

Twilight looked stunned, "I-it's a big event hosted every year in Canterlot. It is held in the palace, and the palace gardens. It's considered a high class social event. Most people never get a chance to go, unless you have some type of business or something."

I nodded, "We had events similar to that. Is that why everyone wanted a ticket?"

"Yes," Twilight paused, "You should probably get some more sleep. I'll send Princess Celestia a letter saying you're alright."

I shut my eyes, and feel myself immediately slip back into oblivion.

(LINE BREAK)

Author's Note: Still don't own MLP. Please don't sue. Please R&R to let me know what you think.


End file.
